Dreams
by rawrchelle
Summary: Sasuke/Sakura. “Come with me, Sakura.” His words were so soothing, his touches so intimate, his kisses so real. Or, maybe, she just wanted them to be.
1. i

**A/N:** This is actually my first attempted SasuSaku. Well, the first one I remember, anyway. I'm actually sort of proud of it?

Much, much, much, _much_ thanks to my beta, xx. false - deception for putting up with my sending her a new chapter to beta, like, every day. I'm almost done; one or two chapters left. Gambatte!

**Warning:** Rated M for sexual references/scenes in the future, and slight language.

Disclaimed.  
read&review.

* * *

**Dreams**  
_the first night._

* * *

People saw dreams differently. Some had bizarre dreams. Some had nice dreams. Some didn't have dreams at all.

Some said dreams were nothing. Some said they were a figment of your imagination. Some said they represented your life from a different perspective. Some said they were what you wanted to be true.

But Haruno Sakura said dreams were as real as life itself.

**x**

_Mission: Capture Uchiha Sasuke by any means possible. Keep him alive and bring him back for interrogation._

Her team was different from the one she was used to. It was strange for her to turn to her right and not see Naruto's bright hair, but instead, Hyuuga Neji's brown hair blowing in the wind. It was unusual to turn to her left and find Nara Shikamaru's masked face instead of Sai's stoic expression. And she most certainly didn't like glancing behind her and find that Tenten's ANBU outfit replaced Kakashi's silver hair in her peripheral vision.

It wasn't that she didn't like her new team. She just…wasn't used to it.

Being a newly appointed ANBU member changed a lot of things. First of all, those who weren't shinobi weren't supposed to know you were part of it. Secondly, you rarely got to work with people with lower rankings. Even if you were a squad captain, you would only be with a team of jounins.

This meant that until Naruto passed that brutal, horrifying exam, she would rarely work with him. And that, in itself, was saddening.

Sakura was proud of being able to become one of them. The ANBU were the elites—the best around. But it was hard to adjust to. What she hated most was her mask. She couldn't even breathe properly, and it felt like it was shielding her from the world—or perhaps, shielding the world from her.

But she couldn't let her mind wander now. She had been assigned a mission, and the mission was to find Sasuke and bring him back. She wasn't going to fail this time. She wouldn't allow it.

**x**

Sakura didn't start believing in the dreams she had until she was seventeen. In fact, Sakura wasn't a lot of things until she was seventeen.

Many people told her how she'd changed in the past years. Nineteen and more mature now, she would like to think that she was a better person than before. But that was debatable. In fact, a lot of things about her were debatable.

It was a well known fact that she had been in love with Uchiha Sasuke. The Godaime had risked this mission by putting her in the team to retrieve him. It wasn't certain that those feelings wouldn't resurface again in the middle of battle. And Sakura really, _really_ hoped they wouldn't. It wasn't as if she wasn't uneasy enough already.

She wasn't sure if she could differentiate feelings anymore. With Naruto's brotherly bonds (even if they _were_ one-sided) and Kakashi's student-teacher inclinations, she couldn't guarantee that she only felt friendship towards the missing member of their team. Did it go beyond that? She wasn't sure if she wanted to know or not.

Life was funny that way, she supposed. A lot of things were funny that way.

**x**

On the first night, Sakura didn't expect anything.

As her team set up their camp, she left to scout their surroundings. This mission was of the utmost importance. No one could make a single slip. When Sasuke had been spotted on the border of the Fire Country and the Wind Country, it had been a surprise to everyone. It was as if he was deliberately being seen and leaving trails.

There was a high probability that it was a trap. But they were going to take it.

The night was clear and still as she slipped through the tree branches. The slits in her mask limited her vision, and she took it off, almost positive that she wasn't going to run into anyone, anyway.

She took in a deep breath, glad that she could breathe properly again. Strapping her mask to her hip, she took off again with renewed energy. It was a nice night. Their mission was off to a good start.

She briefly wondered what Naruto was up to. She wasn't allowed to tell him what her mission was about, so she was a little worried about how he would enrage Tsunade once he found out and barged into her office, demanding an explanation as to why he wasn't assigned the mission as well. It hurt her slightly to know that she wasn't pursuing the Uchiha with the people she _should_ be pursuing him with—Naruto, Kakashi, and Sai—but she supposed it couldn't be helped. But she wished it could've.

Landing soundlessly onto the grass, she watched as a small mouse scurried away from her presence. In fact, now that she'd noticed, the area was a little _too_ quiet. There were no hoots of owls, or chirps of crickets. It was as if someone had…chased them all away.

She shook her head and laughed inwardly at herself. Maybe _her_ team were the ones frightened the animals. Maybe their chakra was too overwhelming.

The wind rustled the leaves softly from behind her, and she tensed. Her hand reached down to her hip to put her mask back on, but she thought better of herself and pulled a kunai from her holster instead. Ever since the early evening, there _was_ no wind in the area.

A deep chuckle resonated through the still air, and she didn't move. "Do you think you can beat me with that, Sakura?" Regrettably, the voice was all too familiar. She didn't want to recognize it. Not just yet, anyway.

She swallowed. "Are you saying a kunai won't save me…Sasuke-kun?"

**x**

One of Sakura's favorite dreams was the one where Sasuke actually loved her back. They were the most commonly occurring ones.

There were many different scenarios. Sometimes, he would confess to her one day after a training session, after Naruto and Kakashi had left. Then they would go on a date together. Sometimes, he would just kiss her out of the blue. Admittedly, it was always better when he kissed her in front of Ino.

In various dreams, even Naruto and Kakashi would be around to witness it. She'd flush a deep red, fiddling with her fingers and not knowing where to look while he would tell her his feelings in his usual cool demeanor, completely unabashed.

But of course, these were dreams. They didn't come true.

At least, she thought they didn't come true.

**x**

She didn't wait for his answer. She didn't want to _hear_ his answer. She was afraid of what it might've done to her.

Spinning around on the soles of her feet, she brought the kunai towards him, only to hear it clash with the metal of his katana. She was careful to keep from looking at his face—not because of his Sharingan, but because of the feelings it might stir from inside of her. Sakura didn't have many weaknesses, but when she stumbled across one, it worked rather well against her.

And Sasuke was her biggest weakness.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, pressing her blade hard against his. The screech of weapon against weapon was unpleasant to her ears, and any peace that used to be in the air had disappeared. "You were last spotted twenty miles from this area."

He completely ignored her question, and asked one of his own. "Where's Naruto?"

Her eyes narrowed and she leapt away, glaring at his feet—because, for the love of all she held dear, she couldn't glare anywhere else. "Why does that matter to you?"

"I figured that if you were here, so would the rest of them."

The rest of them. That was how he referred to them. Not _the team_, not _Team Seven_, not _Team Kakashi_—but _the rest of them_. She bit her bottom lip in frustration. Just hearing his voice sent small flutters to her stomach, and she chastised herself for being so easily swayed. It was stupid, she thought. It'd been six years, and he could still affect her in ways no one else could.

"I'm with a different team," she responded as nonchalantly as she could. "Naruto's back in the village."

"Look at me, Sakura. I have my Sharingan off." His tone was commanding, and something told her that there might be serious consequences of she didn't listen to him.

So she looked.

He was just as beautiful as he always was. Pale skin, spiky raven hair, aristocratic cheekbones, hard obsidian eyes, and delicate lips. His forehead was bare, where his hitai-ate should've been. Where it _needed_ to be. She couldn't help but note how well he matured over the years. He was so perfect it hurt.

"You've…changed," she finally said, letting her arms drop when he sheathed his sword. Her kunai sat loosely in the cage of her fingers, ready to go at any time.

He nodded towards her. "As have you." She regarded herself, and wondered what on earth about her could've changed, save for her ANBU outfit. She had remained relatively the same over the years, she was sure. She'd stopped physically growing quite a while back…

He chuckled faintly when he noticed her slight confusion. "Your hair," he told her. "It's different."

Her free hand rose subconsciously to her pink locks. "Oh. I tried to grow it out a little, I guess. It's still not as long as before, though." Something in her couldn't believe that she was actually conversing with a missing-nin, but something _else_ told her—this something being much bigger—that this was as right as the world was round.

She could hear the smirk in his voice. "Still believe in that rumor?"

She bit her lip, nervous. Nervous of how he saw her—of what he thought of her now. "What rumor?"

"That Uchiha Sasuke liked girls with long hair."

She remained silent for a moment, contemplating what to say next and how it would be so nice to just stay here forever and say absolutely nothing to each other. "Not so much that—more for old times' sake, I guess."

The grass underneath his feet shuffled, and he turned away. "It's nice. Your bangs, I mean."

She heard Inner Sakura laugh wholeheartedly at her when her cheeks flared. That compliment was too much. Sasuke _never_ complimented her. "Thanks…I guess."

He didn't say anything more, so she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. She was tempted to drop her kunai and just let her memories float away back to the years before…but she supposed she couldn't do that, could she?

"Sasuke-kun, I'm going to have to end the conversation here." Her tone was hard again, and her grip on her blade tightened.

He laughed dryly. "Here to kill me, are you? Are you sure you can do that?" His back was still facing her, but there was no doubt he was just as alert as she was, now.

Her tone was bitter. "Hokage-sama was kind enough to allow us to keep you alive. You're going to have to follow us back to Konoha quietly though, if you don't want to be brought to a near death-state." She watched as his hand slowly rose to the hilt of his katana strapped to his back, and he pulled it out, the blade longer than his entire arm.

"Not going to call for your teammates?" he asked her mockingly, all warmth in his voice gone—if there was any warmth there to begin with.

"I'm not obligated to answer that." In any normal circumstance, where she was working with Team Kakashi, she would've called for them right away—she would've called them the moment she saw him. But to be honest, Sakura was afraid of what might happen if she requested for help from her current teammates. She was sure they wouldn't go easy on him—and she would hate to see him on the verge of death. She was confident in herself. She was sure she could at least immobilize him.

At least, she hoped she could. She had to.

Sasuke's head suddenly whipped back and their eyes locked for a brief, horrifying moment—green to crimson—and Sakura's brows furrowed as she charged forward with her kunai.

Medics were usually the best at taijutsu, and were trained to avoid as much damage as possible. That was how it worked. If the medic was killed, the survival rate of his team would drop drastically. Sakura could dodge the hits and swings of his katana well enough—but he wasn't harmed either, and that was a problem.

"I really don't want to do this, Sasuke-kun," she said through gritted teeth, kicking the katana out of his hand. He did the same with her kunai, and her fists began to glow with chakra as she reeled back for a punch, positive that it would break at least a bone or two. She could've caused greater damaged if she wanted to, but…well, she didn't want to.

The moment seemed to last forever, but it might've only been half a second when she threw her fist towards his face—and missed.

Well, not missed. She was sure it would've hit if he didn't catch it. She cringed when she felt and heard many bones in his hand fracture. And yet, somehow, his grip on her fist was as tight as it would be if it wasn't damaged.

"Then don't," he responded simply.

She blinked. It seemed like such an easy conclusion. Almost too easy. She felt her clenched fist begin to tremble, and she dropped her arm. "But I can't," she whispered, wincing when her voice cracked. "You won't come back willingly…"

"Do you remember the shinobi saying number twenty-five?" Sasuke asked offhandedly, inspecting his damaged hand. She noticed how red the skin was; some nasty bruises were sure to form on it if it wasn't fixed soon.

She swallowed. "A shinobi must never show his emotions. The mission always comes first."

The lump in her throat was painful, and despite herself, she reached out and grabbed his wrist, fingers fumbling over each other as she stepped closer and inspected the damage. "I'll fix it for you," she mumbled, hoping he wouldn't hear her. She was sure he did, though.

The chakra in her palm served a different purpose now; not to hurt, but to heal. It was a simple task for her; find the broken bones, and mold them back together. In less than a minute, his hand was just as it was before she had attacked him.

"I see you've become a medic as well," Sasuke observed as he flexed his fingers. "It suits you."

"I don't want your compliments," she hissed, turning away from him. "You've manipulated me enough in the past."

"I never manipulated you," came his immediate reply. "You manipulated yourself." And she was reluctant to admit that he was right. He never really did anything; she just blindly followed him like a helpless little puppy.

"Shut up," she whispered, feeling the tears sting her eyes. "Shut up." She brought her hands up and roughly wiped them dry before they could even roll down her cheeks.

"You attack me, but yet you don't want to hurt me. You want to talk, but you don't want my compliments. Rather contradictory, I see," he said dryly. "What is it that you want, Sakura? Do you really want me to return to Konoha, or do you just _want me_?"

She stiffened. She _hated_ it when he made her second-guess herself.

"Ignorance is bliss," Inner Sakura snorted, rolling her eyes.

"I…don't know," she finally managed to say shakily. "I just know that my mission is to bring you back. Whether or not I want it has nothing to do with it." She felt his hand on her shoulder, and she tensed immediately. The words _don't touch me_ were just hanging on her tongue, but they somehow wouldn't leave her mouth.

The usual "hn" that she always used to hear him say left his lips. "Don't tell me you still harbor those useless feelings for me."

"Maybe I do," she snapped indignantly, immediately regretting her decision.

He turned her around, his Sharingan glazed over. She was close enough to see and count all three tomoe, sitting at a standstill in those seemingly pools of blood. She shivered when she remembered how they resembled the cursed seal Orochimaru gave him all those years ago.

"You're weak," he told her simply, features blank.

She struggled to keep her composure. "Only for you."

And what surprised her the most was the fact that he leaned down, even closer than before. He must've been pretty desperate to catch her in some twisted genjutsu. His breath tickled her lips, and she feigned the urge to swallow, in fear of breaking the moment. Her breath hitched when he leaned in, even closer.

And then he kissed her.

She wasn't sure if she fainted from the feeling of his lips against hers, or if he pressed a pressure point on the back of her neck.

**x**

One who possessed the Sharingan had an eye of insight and an eye of hypnosis. Sakura first learned that on her first C-rank mission.

When she saw how Kakashi had put his eye to use, she found it amazing. Using the eye of insight to immediately copy Zabuza's movements, and then the eye of hypnosis to control his thoughts and show him an illusion, he had thrown the missing-nin off guard and almost killed him.

Over the years, Sakura had almost forgotten about the Sharingan's ability to copy moves and change thoughts. It was more known for its illusions. Even now, she didn't doubt that her former teacher continued to copy moves, but she rarely saw his mismatched eye in action anyway, so it never came to mind.

She wondered if Sasuke ever used his eyes that way. And then she realized that maybe, she didn't want to know.

**x**

Sakura's eyes flashed open to find herself staring at the starry sky. She blinked once, twice, three times, before she found out that she was lying on her back, with a fire crackling to her left.

Groggily, she sat up, wincing when she was met with a slight headache. She glanced around. "Shikamaru? Tenten?"

The weapons mistress smiled at her. "You didn't come back, so we were a little worried. Neji went to look for you, and found you sleeping against the tree. If you were tired, you could've told us, you know. We could've scouted instead."

She placed a hand to the back of her head, and with some careful chakra, her headache disappeared. "So where's Neji now?"

"Patrolling. He said he's sort of worried, because you weren't the kind of person to just sit down and sleep."

Her mind was still somewhat blurred from the sleep, and it didn't ebb away fast enough for her to gather her thoughts. "Well, yeah, I was pretty tired. I didn't get a good sleep last night." She felt Shikamaru's dark eyes flash in her direction, but he didn't say anything. He was lying on his back with his arms underneath his head as a pillow—the way he usually was while cloud watching.

Slowly, it came back to her. Sasuke…Sharingan…_Kiss_…

"You really fucked up this time," Inner Sakura laughed, hands on her hips. "Just wait 'til you get busted."

But her mind was still hazy. Even as she shook off the sleep, she couldn't quite guarantee that she really saw Sasuke. Bringing her holster to her hands, she pulled out all of her kunai—and found that she wasn't missing a single one. If she really did bump into Sasuke, she should've been one short, since he kicked hers out of her hand.

Something was very wrong.

On the first night, Sakura didn't expect anything. But by the end of it, she was very much alert.

**

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**

**A/N: **Well, tell me what you think, okay? :)

08-24-09: I went back and changed some wording and fixed a couple of typos. It's only been a year, but I can see my writing style changing so quickly. I'll get to editing the rest of this...eventually. In the meantime, you should review. ;) Even though this entire thing is completed. Because I'm cool like that.


	2. ii

**Dreams  
**_the second night._

* * *

Although Sakura was an outstanding kunoichi, she was still just an ordinary girl. She had infatuations, friends, peers, and dreams, just like any other ordinary person. She had pet peeves, favorites, and even ambitions. She was just as normal as the next person over.

But, she supposed, that was what made her a human, and not a killing tool.

She also supposed that this fact would be the death of her. Probably.

**x**

On the second night, Sakura was wary.

It didn't take too long for her team to reach the designated area where Sasuke was spotted not too long ago. They arrived by early evening, so they began to set up camp. Sakura suggested that they begin to spread out and look for clues—or that might've just been a desperate attempt on her part to see Sasuke again, real or not—but Shikamaru reasoned that they had time. If he really was leading them into a trap, he might as well be patient about it.

So she settled with making them a scarce meal. There was a small village nearby, so they could replenish their sources later; their soldier pills must be used sparingly. Tenten was out checking their surroundings and looking for landmarks, making sure they were in the right place.

She worked slowly. Sasuke was clouding up her mind, and she wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. If she wasn't missing her kunai, then maybe she really did just sit down against that tree and fall asleep…

Unless Sasuke put it back in her holster. But she was sure it disappeared into the trees somewhere. Why would he go out of his way to find it again? Or did he replace it with his own?

He was sickeningly suspicious. She was sure he was up to something. He would never treat her that way unless he wanted something from her. Never in their years of friendship—if she could even call it a friendship—had he complimented her. He only demanded and took—never requested or gave. And he certainly, _definitely_ wouldn't kiss her.

It might've been an illusion, she concluded. Indeed, an illusion. The Sharingan was the best at that, right? Even though she was the best at detecting genjutsu within Team Seven, if it was cleverly laid out, she was sure she was as good as dead.

"Dinner's ready," she announced, bringing the food from atop the fire. "Where's Tenten?"

"Returning," Neji said calmly, switching his Byakugan off and accepting his share of food from Sakura. Shikamaru took his share as well, and they ate in silence.

A little after Tenten returned, the Nara spoke up. "How are you feeling, Sakura?"

Her head perked up. "What do you mean?"

His dark eyes narrowed on her as they often did when he found something troublesome. "You were kind of dazed the entire day. Are you worn out or something? We could spend a day or so recuperating. We have the time."

She managed a smile and shook her head. "No, I'm fine. I guess I'm worried about Naruto. Usually, he'd be the one on this mission, you know?"

"It's true that Hokage-sama would normally assign this mission to Team Kakashi," Neji agreed. "But when Sasuke leaves his trails openly open like this, it's much too dangerous. The ANBU is fitter for the job."

After dinner, they discussed their plans. The next day, they would infiltrate the nearby village and gather what information they could. It was almost guaranteed that they would find something, with Sasuke dropping blatant hints that any moderate shinobi could find. The only question now was…what kind of trap had he set up?

Sakura closed her eyes as she snuggled into her thin, compact sleeping bag. This was what was real. Konoha was real, this mission was real, and Neji, Tenten, and Shikamaru were real. She didn't need a kunai to tell her otherwise, and she didn't have to doubt them. What she needed to doubt now was Sasuke. His illusions and these feelings—she couldn't trust them, and she hated that. Not being able to trust herself was something she had always despised.

She fell asleep easily that night. When she woke up, she would think, almost too easily.

**x**

Sometimes, Sakura's dreams weren't anything special.

There were the occasional nights when she dreamt about Naruto eating ramen, or maybe Ino picking flowers. She would dream about finally seeing Kakashi without his mask on, or Lee finding some other girl he was in love with. You know, trivial matters.

At points, she would even dream about Sasuke accepting her as a friend, and not just a teammate. He would smile at her—a real, genuine smile—and they might even go on a walk together. Of course, she knew that'd never _actually_ happen, but a girl could dream, right?

Now that she thought about it, Sakura never saw Sasuke smile. She'd seen him scowl, she'd seen him smirk—but smile? No, never.

**x**

She felt someone nudge her awake. Groaning, Sakura heaved herself into a sitting position, a little ticked off to find that someone would wake her while the moon was still out.

It took her a few moments to take in her surroundings and realize she wasn't in her sleeping bag. The grass pricked her exposed legs, and she felt a little colder than she should have. The fire they had set up was still burning when she had fallen asleep, but when she glanced to her left where it should've been, she didn't see the flames or burnt logs that should've been there.

"Sakura." The voice sent eerie shivers down her spine, and her head whipped around to meet with hard, onyx eyes.

"Stop fucking with me, Sasuke-kun," she snarled before he could continue. Blinking away the sleep, she pulled herself to her feet and placed her hands on her hips. "Your tactics are only going to work on me once." But even she wasn't sure of her own words.

The smirk was back. That damned smirk. "Are you sure about that?" The pale skin of his chest glowed in the moonlight, and she scowled at the clothes he wore. They were the same as they were three years ago, when they found him in Orochimaru's hideout.

"I don't know if this is a genjutsu or what, but I swear to God, when I'm serious—"

He disappeared in a blur, and the next time she saw him, he had an arm snaked around her waist and her body was arching against his from the way he was bending over her. "What happens when you're serious?" he taunted, breath dancing over her lips. He brought himself closer until his mouth was at her ear. "A shinobi must be able to deceive. Didn't we learn that on the first day? You shouldn't be telling me what'll happen." He blew lightly in her ear, and she shook slightly from frustration, and slightly from the closeness of it all.

"Let go of me," she hissed, ignoring the blatant pounding of her heart. She couldn't trust herself. She knew that. "I'm not the same girl you knew six years ago." His body was pressed hard against hers, and her heartbeat quickened even more. She wondered if he could feel it against his chest.

Sasuke's head tilted back slightly so their gaze met once more. "Come with me, Sakura." It wasn't a request, or a question. It was a command.

She scowled. "If you think that I'm going to follow you just because you tell me to—"

"What is it that you want?" He lowered his head and his lips pressed against her collarbone. She fought back the gasp of surprise. "Power?" She felt his teeth graze her skin. "Attention? Sex?" His hand on her back lowered until it reached her behind. "I can give it all to you."

Her weak struggle to escape his grip was fruitless. "I want none of that."

She could hear Inner Sakura snort. "Love," she told her loudly. "You want his love."

But Sasuke had no love. And even if he did, he wouldn't give it to her. She bit her lip when his hand squeezed her behind, determined to not let him know he was getting to her. But he was probably aware of it, anyway.

And then he kissed her again. It wasn't as dizzying as the last time—for that, she was glad—but she still saw white lights go off behind her eyelids—and then she became angry at herself for even closing her eyes.

"Then what is it that you want?" he murmured in a low tone against her lips. She was breathless; the lack of oxygen to her brain caused her to feel lightheaded, and for the first time in a long time, she felt _weak_, she felt _vulnerable_, and she felt _hopelessly and terrifyingly in love_.

"I want you to return to Konoha," she breathed, eyes half open. It was only then that she realized how tall he had grown. _Useless musings,_ she told herself wryly. "I want you to live a normal life with me, Kakashi, and Naruto. I want you to get to know Sai, and I want to eat ramen with you. I want to see you smile for me, I want to see you happy…There are so many things that I want, Sasuke-kun, but none of that will _ever _happen, because you're busy avenging your _clan_."

"Consider this," he said, finally releasing his grip on her. For a brief moment, she was relieved that she could think clearly again—but more than anything, missed the warmth he gave her. "If I kill Itachi, I will return to Konoha. Correct?"

She eyed him warily for a moment, before nodding once.

"You've grown a lot stronger over these past few years. I'll acknowledge that. If you help me kill Itachi…I will come without hesitation."

"Is that…why you deliberately laid out your tracks so we'd follow you?"

"Put two and two together. I'm not going to do it for you."

She couldn't believe it. It was such a _simple_ plan—they'd never have suspected it. Tsunade had even considered that he was going to ambush Konoha, starting with their ANBU forces…or manipulate their shinobi into turning their backs against the village. But something as straightforward as gathering more forces to kill his brother…

"And what, I'm the only one that you expected to follow you?" she asked sarcastically, intimidation laced in her voice. She was sure Sasuke had the full ability to whisk her away if he truly wanted to—and that was truly frightening.

He turned away. "You'd be straying from your mission, but my brother is in Konoha's bingo book. You wouldn't be going against your village."

She considered it. "I'm sure you'd be able to kill him on your own, though." Just the thought of hiding something from Shikamaru's clever mind, from Neji's penetrating eyes, from Tenten's trust…In any other situation, she would've refused immediately.

But this was Sasuke. _Sasuke_ was asking her. _Sasuke_, who never asked _anything_ of her. And offering to return, as if only just going off on a six year-long mission.

"But with you…" He raised his hand, fingertips ghosting across her cheeks. "It'd be _so_ much easier." He paused, as if thinking. "Just so long as I'm the one who actually kills him."

"So many conditions," she said, looking for excuses to refuse and hoping that he'd take back the offer before she gave in and accepted. "I don't know if I can meet them all."

"You can." He tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. The hair that he had complimented just the night before. "You _will_." His voice was so soothing. It brought back memories of the early years, when she didn't have to worry about anything, when there was no such thing as _betrayal_ or _Akatsuki_—or even death. The thoughts brought tears to her eyes.

Sasuke chuckled softly, crimson bleeding softly into his eyes. "You still cry as easily as you smile."

"And you still do nothing but _scowl_ and _smirk_ all the time," she retorted, wanting to melt into his touch. How many years had she waited for this? "So you're saying that if I help you kill Itachi…you'll return."

"How many times must I repeat myself?"

She couldn't believe what she was about to say. "What's the plan?" Her selfishness, her naivety…to actually think that this was going to end well. She inwardly laughed at herself. But then again, she supposed there wasn't any other way. If Sasuke didn't want to be found or caught, he wouldn't be found or caught. It was just as simple as that.

A smirk made its way to the Uchiha's lips, and his hand dropped from her cheek—and she just wished it'd be back there again. "I'll leave trails behind that lead back to Konoha. Itachi was last seen around there. That way, you can follow me, but still have your team along as well."

"You have it all figured out already?"

"More or less. I'll fetch you once I need you."

Sakura played with her fingers, gaze falling to the ground. "So…when will I see you again?"

"Most likely not for a day or two." His hand was on his hip, almost obnoxiously. She knew he was originally a handsome person, but when under the moonlight…She swallowed.

"If I just wanted to see you and talk to you…would I be allowed to?"

"You're better company than Karin." She took his indirect comment as affirmative. She could only wonder what kind of person this Karin was, to have Sasuke so eager to escape her presence.

She took a deep breath. "Then…can you stay tonight, for a little while longer? Just talk to me." When Sasuke didn't answer, she took it as a yes, and she sat herself down on the grass, suddenly feeling very confident in herself. Surely, she could do this behind her team's back and still succeed. It couldn't be too difficult.

She had to be able to do it. She was the only one who could.

"What is there to talk about?" He sat himself down beside her and propped himself up on his hands as he leaned backwards. Sakura brought her knees up and hugged them. Tonight was colder than the night before—or was it her imagination?—and even the the moon was half hidden by the clouds.

Her shoulders rose and fell in a light shrug. "I don't know. Your life, I guess. It's been six years, after all."

"How about you talk about yours first?"

She smiled lightly. He was still as conservative as usual. "What would you like to hear about?"

"You said you wanted me get to know someone. Sai was his name, right?"

Her head leaned back so she stared at the moon, half hidden by the grey clouds. "He's the person who filled in your place in Team Kakashi. You've met him once, haven't you? He was assigned a mission from Danzo to kill you three years ago."

There was a brief silence. "I suppose I do recall someone by that name." She shivered slightly as a soft breeze blew by. Her senses were completely alert for any sound, sight, or movement—not for enemies, though, but for Sasuke. She wanted to detect anything he did or said; that was just how she was. Instincts weren't something that were easily forgotten. "Tell me about Naruto."

A smile met her lips at the blonde's name. "He's grown a lot. He's gotten so much stronger; sometimes, I don't think I can even recognize him anymore."

"It's hard to imagine someone like him growing stronger."

She glanced back at him, and was amused at the slight confusion that showed in his features. "Well, that's just _you_. It's been six years; he isn't the boy who can't even control the Kyuubi's power anymore. I wouldn't want to face _him_ in a life or death battle."

"He's that good?"

Sakura laid herself out on the ground and stretched her limbs. She rolled over onto her side with her arm serving as a pillow so she could watch the Uchiha. "Yeah. Does that make you want to fight him?"

She saw him smirk slightly. "Sort of."

Their conversation died there. She supposed it was a good thing; she still needed to think things over. Her kunoichi instincts were telling her that siding with Sasuke wasn't a good thing—but her heart, as lame as that might sound, told her otherwise. Just seeing the familiar spiky raven hair and feeling the piercing gaze on her was so nostalgic, and she was sure even Naruto wouldn't blame her for it…

"We're going to town tomorrow," she mumbled slowly, not realizing that her eyes were drooping shut. "To find some trails. You might want to leave something there for us to find." She was half asleep already, and her mind was felt shutting down from exhaustion. She couldn't recall when she had last thought about something so thoroughly.

Already partway to dreamland, she wasn't quite sure if the lips she felt pressing against her forehead were real or not.

**x**

"_Sakura-chan!" She lifted her head in surprise to find Naruto peeking in through the hospital window while she was tending to a sleeping patient._

_She frowned. "This is the second floor, Naruto; don't do that. I don't want to see Konohamaru following in your footsteps next week." Even for someone who was almost a grown man, there were points when he was still a child._

_A pout reached the blonde's lips. "Hey, don't be like that. Go on a date with me, will you?"_

"_Let me guess." She rolled her eyes. "Ichiraku?"_

"_Yup!"_

"_Won't Hinata get jealous?" she teased, watching as her friend's cheeks flushed a little. "You're not supposed to take other girls on dates when you already have a girlfriend." Funny, she thought. Everyone matures at one point or another. The Hyuuga heiress had grown at her own pace, as well. The days where she stuttered over her own words every other sentence were long gone._

"_She's on a mission," Naruto shot back indignantly. "And she knows we're just friends. It's not like _you'd_ ever go out with me, anyway." He muttered the last part, but she could still hear him, and she giggled lightly._

_After making some last notes on her clipboard, she capped her pen. "Sure. Just wait for me at the front door; I'll be down in a few." When the bright hair and cerulean eyes finally disappeared, she sighed and ran a hand through her hair, untangling the knots that had gathered from pulling an all-nighter._

_She shrugged off her white coat in the staff room and hung it up in her locker. Had she matured over time? That was debatable. She was sure she'd grown stronger, but mentally…_

_Her secretary bid her goodbye as she signed out. After working over twenty-four hours straight with only five to ten-minute breaks in between, she figured she deserved the rest of the day off._

_Throughout lunch, Naruto chattered about his last date with Hinata, and his latest mission with Kiba and Ino. She kept quiet most of the time, but she did enjoy listening to the tales he was able to tell her over a cheerful bowl of ramen. This was the life, she thought. Good job, good friends, good home…_

_It was almost perfect._

_Somewhere inside her, she knew she loved Naruto, but she didn't notice how much she did until she acknowledged how terrible her life would be without him._

**x**

On the second night, Sakura was wary. But she soon realized that she wasn't wary enough.

**

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**A/N: **Again, I would like to thank xx. false - deception for betaing every single chapter of this fic for me. It really means a lot. (One more chapter. Just bear with me a little longer. XD)

If you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask. I do think there are a lot of things in this story that might be confusing—but I wouldn't know, because it all works out in my head.

I'm glad so many of you enjoyed the first chapter. I think this has been the best received fic I have ever written, so that makes me incredibly happy. :)

08-26-09: Reread and edited. Hopefully, things flow a bit smoother, and there isn't as much unnecessary information.


	3. iii

**Dreams  
**_the third night._

* * *

One time, during a girls' talk, Ino had laughed at her.

"You still dream of him?" she taunted, a grin set to her lips. "No wonder you haven't gotten laid yet."

"The fact that I've never slept with anyone doesn't have to do with me dreaming of him," she retorted indignantly. "What about you? How many times have you been with Kiba now?" She could've sworn that her best friend and Shikamaru would've gotten together, but she supposed the world held many surprises.

Ino waved her hand, as if dismissing the subject. "Drunk. No-strings-attached sex doesn't count." She paused, and Sakura rolled her eyes. "But we _did_ do it one more time after that."

"I'm probably going to stay single my whole life," the medic-nin said, although not disappointedly. "I'll die a virgin."

The blonde draped her arm around her shoulders. "And that's why we have alcohol and clubs!"

That night, Ino went out with Kiba, because she sure as hell wasn't going.

**x**

For some strange reason, Sakura felt refreshed the next morning. When she woke up, Neji was the only other person awake. The sun was just peeking above the horizon, and even the birds bothered to greet her.

"Morning," she muttered in her usual morning tone, grimacing when the chill air bit at her exposed skin when she stood up and stretched.

"Good morning."

She didn't even consider how she managed to return to the camp when she fell asleep at Sasuke's side. But then again, he was as stealthy as a snake, and even quieter. Slipping her body back into her sleeping bag in the middle of the night shouldn't have been hard if everyone was asleep. The only thing that surprised her was the fact that he actually bothered to do that.

She began to pack up her sleeping bag, getting ready to move. It was times like these when she longed for a shower, and maybe a place to brush her teeth. "We're heading to town today, right?"

"Yes. We'll stay at an inn tonight—Tenten's been complaining about her lack of hygiene."

A relieved smile spread on her lips. "Hygiene is good," she told the Hyuuga. An indifferent "hn" was heard, but other than that, he didn't respond.

When Shikamaru and Tenten woke up and got themselves ready, they set out for town. Sakura wasn't sure what trails Sasuke had left for them, but she was sure they would be easy enough to find.

The village somewhat reminded her of Konoha. It was a nice place; smiling people, children playing in the streets, boisterous market. She was even tempted to giggle when she saw a ramen stand standing on a corner. Surely, Naruto would be angry once she returned.

"How are we splitting up this time?" Tenten asked Neji, the squad captain.

He thought for a moment. "Groups of two. The village is small; four people gathering information will have us finished before lunch. I would like us to be careful; in a place like this, anything can happen. Two minds are always better than one. Tenten, you will come with me. Shikamaru will go with Sakura."

Shikamaru heaved a sigh as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Tch. If you want to take your girlfriend on a date, wait 'til we get back, at the very least."

Neji's gaze hardened on the Nara. "Watch your mouth."

He waved it off. "Sure, sure." It wasn't that much of a known fact that Hyuuga Neji was dating Tenten, but once you were in the ANBU and worked with them more, you noticed the subtle differences in which they treated each other. Once, Neji had picked a flower, saying it was poisonous, before giving it to Tenten anyway.

Once the couple had walked off, Sakura and Shikamaru stood there for a few prolonged moments. "So, where do we go?" she asked.

He shrugged. "A place where I can rest while gathering information." She recalled how Jiraiya used to infiltrate small villages, and smiled lightly at the memory.

"How about a bar, then?" she suggested. "As long as we don't drink too much, I'm sure it's fine." She didn't like the idea of running into drunkards—and she would've never done it if she was alone—but with Shikamaru, she figured it was alright.

They went into the first one they saw. She soon realized that Neji and Tenten had the same idea—the two were sitting at the counter, in their transformed identities. The Hyuuga had his arm around his girlfriend's shoulders, and he watched them warily.

"So that's why he split us up the way he did," she heard Shikamaru mutter as they left the bar. "Less conspicuous. Sakura, let's transform, too."

After finding a deserted spot, both of them promptly said softly, "Henge no Jutsu!" and transformed into what they hoped were normal looking people. Being shinobi and never having to pretend to be a regular civilian in Konoha, Sakura wasn't confident in her jutsu—but then again, she was sure Shikamaru's wasn't great, either. There was never a fashion amongst her generation; each person had their own unique taste in clothing. Naruto was a good example.

They entered the next bar, hand in hand. She didn't like the way her bangs in her peripheral vision weren't pink, but brown instead—but she supposed it couldn't be helped. She and Shikamaru seated themselves at the counter, and the bartender, a middle-aged man, asked for their orders.

"One sake," her partner requested. "Two cups."

At this time in the morning, there weren't many people occupying the bar. In the corner, she saw some middle-aged men, passed out on their table and drooling. She shuddered lightly as the Nara's hand left hers and an arm was draped over her shoulders.

She sat between Shikamaru and another man—a younger one. He looked relatively sober with a small cup lazily held between two fingers. Taking a sip of his drink, he glanced at her from the corner of his eye, and to her surprise, her gaze met with his, hard and strangely familiar.

"Sir," he called out to the bartender. Sakura took a wary sip of her sake, wrinkling her nose at the bitter taste and the way it burned her throat when she swallowed.

"Anything I can help you with?"

Shikamaru looked as though he was having a good time. When she glanced over to him, and his eyes were already half shut as he downed his cup in one go. She nudged him gently with her elbow. "Don't overdo it."

"Yeah, sure."

"Another round, please." Her attention shifted back to the man sitting on her other side. His voice was low, but smooth; almost as if he was playing a trick on the entire world. As the bartender handed him another bottle, he struck up a conversation. "Say, ojii-san, have you ever heard of shinobi?"

Just by the way the arm twitched around her shoulders, she was sure that had caught her partner's attention. The bartender put away the cup, and proceeded to wipe another. "Yeah, but I've never actually seen one. What about them?"

"Do you know what they do for a living?" The atmosphere in the bar dropped immediately, and Sakura instinctively tensed up. There was certainly something up with this man. A subordinate of Sasuke's, maybe? They sure were laying out their trails nice and easy for them to find.

"No." The older man didn't even seem at all interested in the subject, but he had to keep his customers satisfied. "What do they do?"

The younger man beside her leaned forward onto the counter, as if telling a secret. In turn, the bartender leaned forward as well. The words formed on his lips almost terrified her, even though she knew the answer already. "They kill people."

The tension in the air was almost palpable, and she leaned into Shikamaru slightly for support. "You think this is intentional?" she murmured softly to him. She felt him shrug.

"Who knows."

"A shinobi must be able to deceive," the man beside her continued. "He must be able to fool the enemy, and hold his act out until the very end."

Funny, she thought. She was sure she'd heard that somewhere else before…Turning her head to look at him again, she took in all of his features.

A good build. He had pitch black hair, grown out long enough to reach his shoulders. The way he sat indicated how relaxed he was, and her eyes narrowed as he took another sip of his sake. That hard gaze he had given her just a minute ago…

She downed her entire cup, frowning when her throat lit up on fire. Sasuke. Obviously it was Sasuke. As if she wasn't stupid enough already. Sasuke was sitting right beside her, basically yelling in her face where he was going to go and when he was going to leave. She nodded in thanks when Shikamaru filled her cup again.

"You're not a very good drinker," he reminded her. "Don't get too carried away."

She waved her hand, mimicking him. "Yeah, sure."

"Must be hard, then, huh?" After putting away the cup, the bartender threw the cloth he was using into the sink in the back, and supported himself on the counter in front of Sasuke with his elbows. "You need a keen mind and a trained body."

"Yeah." Sasuke nodded. "It's a real complicated thing. There's even an organization and all that commotion that goes against all of the villages where the shinobi reside. Have you heard some of the rumors?"

"Do tell."

"The organization's called Akatsuki," his voice dropped considerably quieter, and she had to strain her ears to hear, "and one of the members killed his entire clan, save for his younger brother." It seemed the bartender was finally growing interested in the story he was being told.

"Really, now? What happened to the younger brother?"

The infamous Uchiha smirk met the man's lips, and Sakura wondered how her partner couldn't possibly recognize who he was. "He survived to this very day, and is searching to kill the murderer. Rumor has it that he's headed towards Konohagakure, the shinobi village in the Country of Fire."

"They're just shoving the answers in our faces, as if we're too stupid to look for them ourselves," Shikamaru muttered in her ear. "It's kind of irritating."

She smiled teasingly. "But not troublesome, right?"

A weary sigh met her ears. "Not troublesome," he agreed.

"You seem to know a lot about these things," the older man said. "Are you a shinobi yourself? Passing by, perhaps?"

Sasuke shook with silent laughter—though she was sure that it was fake. She was sure an expression as happy as that would never grace his regular features. It just wasn't possible. She sighed in slight disappointment when Shikamaru emptied their sake bottle into his own cup.

"No, but I do find these things interesting."

It was then that the middle-aged men in the corner began to groan and heave themselves up in their seats. Slightly slurred profanities about hangovers and uncomfortable chairs were heard as Sasuke and the bartender fell silent.

There were three in total. They lumbered to the door, and Sakura narrowed her eyes at them. They were the type of people she disliked the most. They did nothing but laze around all day, thinking that everything was going to be done for them…It was people like them that pissed her off.

One of the men caught her watching them, and a grin met his lips as he sauntered in their direction. She felt Shikamaru's grip on her tighten, and she was glad for the security.

"Say, you're a pretty one," he commented as he took her chin with two sticky fingers, clearly ignoring her partner. "How much do you charge?"

"It's early in the morning," she said bitterly, turning her head so he would let go of her. "And I'm certainly much too expensive for you." Inner Sakura threw a few feisty punches, a wicked grin set on her lips.

"Tch. What a bitch…" The man beckoned his friends over. "How 'bout we just steal you for a while, then? Then we won't have to pay at all." She frowned when she heard the knuckles begin to crack. "We'll show you just how great morning sex is."

"I'm pretty sure that even a prostitute wouldn't be desperate enough to fuck pigs," she heard Inner Sakura comment, and she almost laughed—until she realized she had said it out loud as well. The words hung in the air, heavy and just waiting to fall. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Shikamaru's jaw drop slightly. She couldn't recall ever saying something so vulgar in her life.

The first man growled, his brawly features scrunching up into an expression of anger. "Fucking whore…" Her muscles tensed and she readied herself for a little fight—until a slim hand landed on the man's shoulder.

She turned her head in surprise to see Sasuke watching them intently. The man growled. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I don't believe a ruckus here would be very convenient." He nodded his head towards the bartender. "He profits from this bar. You wouldn't want him to go broke, would you?"

"What made you think I give a shit?" Despite the man's fierce expression, it began to dissipate, little by little. Sakura glanced at the transformed Uchiha, and noticed the way he watched the three men. It couldn't even be considered a _glare_—but it was much deadlier than anything she'd seen in her life.

There was a long, tense silence. "Fine," the man finally muttered. "We'll leave." Once they noisily made their way out of the bar, she let out a sigh of relief. She didn't know what would have happened if they had caused a commotion here.

What baffled her more, to be honest, was the fact that Sasuke would do anything like that for her. "Thank you," she told him politely, a strained smile on her lips, "but I'm sure I could've handled them myself."

A smile made its way to his face, and she wondered vaguely if this really was the Uchiha whose clan had been slaughtered. "My pleasure to help a lovely lady."

She heart Shikamaru grunt; their signal to leave. After bidding their goodbyes, they made their way out and waited at their meeting place for Neji and Tenten. They'd gathered enough information.

Her partner let out a low whistle as they made themselves comfortable under the tree. "That was pretty tense back there."

She nodded. "Definitely."

Tense, and…intriguing, she decided.

**x**

Of course, not all of Sakura's dreams were nice.

Sometimes, she died. Not for any particular reason; she was just on a mission, and was killed. Her name was engraved in the KIA stone, and that was the end of that.

Other times, Sasuke abandoned her for Ino. Infuriating as it was, the other girl _was _her rival, after all; she had the ability to oppose her. Given, there were many girls that were prettier than both of them, but since Ino was the only girl her life really revolved around, she would be the one who took the Uchiha.

The ones she thought were bittersweet always made her wake up to damp eyes.

They were different. The most common one was where she and Sasuke got married and had two children—one boy and one girl—both of them as adorable as anything. Then, news of Itachi would come, and he would leave without hesitation or saying goodbye or anything—and then, just like that, he'd die.

She didn't like that. Those dreams weren't considered nightmares, but they were pretty damn close.

**x**

On the third night, Sakura was naïve.

Staring out the window of their room, she watched Tenten's sleeping figure rise and fall to her breathing in her bed. It was past midnight now; maybe she should get to bed, too.

After concluding and summarizing their information, it was settled that they would head back to Konoha the next day. Depending on how obvious the trail was, they might be able to make it back in a day—maybe a day and a half. After that, Tenten would notify the Hokage immediately and set up defenses on the outside.

But meanwhile, they were allowed to rest. Sakura enjoyed the feeling of having just showered and feeling clean. Camping out too much surely wasn't healthy.

_"If I just wanted to see you and talk to you…would I be allowed to?"_

_"You're better company than Karin."_

She knew it was foolish of her to even consider seeing the Uchiha—especially when she had already conversed with him earlier in the day. But she already knew it wouldn't be enough; it wasn't really _Sasuke_ she was talking to, but some man in a bar she just happened to bump into.

Surely, she could go a day or two without seeing him. After all, she had gone three years without so much as a glimpse of him, and the last time she had saw him, it was just that—a glimpse.

"You're stupid," Inner Sakura laughed. "D'you really think that you could stay away from him?"

Obviously she could. She wasn't even supposed to know where he was, anyway. She was Haruno Sakura from Konoha, a member of the ANBU assigned on a mission. And yet, she was two-timing this mission…

As quietly as she could, she slipped out of the room and closed the door behind her. Tenten looked pretty tired today; hopefully, she wouldn't wake up.

It was warmer in the village than it was out in the wild. She breathed in the air, tasting the scents of food wafting from the nearby stands. She couldn't believe she was actually doing this. She should be sleeping, recuperating while she could…Not meeting a missing-nin in a rendezvous.

"Sasuke-kun?" she asked tentatively, to no one in particular. She held her hands to her chest, as if hoping, _praying_ that he'd show up.

He did.

"Asking for me, Sakura?" His voice was still different, but that didn't mean it didn't hold its usual mocking tone.

She smiled hesitantly at the black-haired man. "Without you today, our cover might've been blown." She was in her transformed form as well; she supposed she might as well not risk anything while with him.

He turned away, holding an air of indifference. "You could've handled them easily." It was rare for him to ever acknowledge her power, even back in the old days—but maybe, back then, she didn't _have _any power to acknowledge—so she catalogued this moment carefully in the back of her mind.

She laughed lightly. "You wouldn't miss a chance to show off."

"I thought that was Naruto?"

She was surprised at the lax attitude he had with her tonight. He was even pulling a few sarcastic remarks that she didn't even expect him to have the humor to pull anymore, but here he was, smirk and all. She supposed that was a good thing. "Yeah. Him, too."

There was a short, but comfortable, silence. "It seemed like you enjoyed the sake you had today. How about we go to another bar tonight?"

She raised her eyebrows in surprise. "I don't have much money to spend. I thought you'd know that."

"On me, then."

Although she had no idea where he would even get the money from, she didn't have the heart to refuse. This could almost be considered date—something she would've done anything for back in the old days. _This isn't the old days, though,_ she reminded herself. But she discarded the thought almost as quickly as it came.

She shrugged. "Sure."

Although it was late, this particular bar seemed to have many customers. There was even some music playing with a—admittedly, empty—dance floor near the front. Sasuke led her to a table in the back corner, and they ordered their drinks.

"Who's on your team?" he asked offhandedly as he swirled the alcohol in his cup. "I didn't recognize the man you were with today."

"Oh." She took a tentative sip of her cocktail, appreciating the sweet taste over the bitter. "That was Shikamaru. He transformed, too. Tenten and Neji were off somewhere else."

He nodded. "You should be careful, then. With a mind like Shikamaru's and eyes like Neji's, it wouldn't be a surprise if they figured you out."

Sakura frowned. "Hey, it's not as if I can't lie, okay?"

"You aren't great at it."

Rolling her eyes, they fell into a comfortable silence. She took this time to look around her; the bar wasn't as shabby as the one she had been to earlier today, and the people here certainly seemed much nicer.

What did Sasuke do during the day? Sleep, perhaps? Train? Plan? It was then that she realized, she didn't know much about him now—not that she ever knew much about him.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun, what do you do nowadays when you're not pursuing your brother? Do you have any hobbies?" The soft piano music was smooth like water, flowing in and out of the crowd and straight into her ears, almost as if determined to sooth her almost too wary mood. She wasn't sure if she was wary of being caught with him, or of Sasuke himself, though.

"There isn't a moment when I'm not pursuing him." His answer was resolute, final.

She decided to probe a little bit more. She didn't like to be in the dark when it came to the Uchiha—she never liked it to begin with. "You mentioned a girl named Karin. What's she like? You have other people in your group, right?"

He leaned back in his chair, staring aimlessly at the ceiling. "Karin's a chakra-sensing kunoichi. Annoying; all she does is bicker with Suigetsu or bother me." He glanced at her, as if asking, _What, am I _supposed_ to continue?_ "Jugo's Jugo. Nothing much about him."

She nodded slowly. Summarizing three people in three sentences; she was sure she'd never be able to do that. "So, do you like them?"

"Just shut up, Sakura. I've had a long day."

She was taken aback. Inner Sakura laughed loudly, her voice echoing in her suddenly empty mind. Just shut up? He was the one who asked her to this place, and he told her to _shut up_? Okay, she's pretty lenient, considering that this was _Sasuke_, but even she had her fair share of pride.

"Look, Sasuke-kun, if you don't want me here, I'll just go—"

"I never told you to go. I just told you to shut up." His voice had an edge to it, and he sat up in his chair again, leaning forward towards her. In the dark, if was difficult to tell if he had the Sharingan on, but she knew it would probably be too dangerous to push her limits any further.

"So what, you're just going to listen to him?" Inner Sakura snorted. "You're going to just sit here quietly like a good little girl and let him do anything he wants to you?"

_That seems to be the plan,_ she thought darkly to herself. She didn't regret calling him out. Just spending time with him, no matter how it turned out, was always worth it. She didn't know why, but it just was.

She was about to take a rather large gulp of her cocktail, until she felt a hand grab her hair—roughly, almost—and turn her head. Hastily setting down the drink before it spilled, she let out an inaudible muffled sound when a pair of lips pressed hard onto hers.

And all she could do—all she _wanted_ to do—was kiss him back.

There was only so much you could do when you were sitting in separate chairs. Sakura wished she could feel his body pressing against her the way it was the nights before. She wanted to feel his warmth, have his taste on her lips as a little memento when he left later on tonight…

A gasp of surprise almost escaped her lips when a warm tongue gently probed into her mouth. Was this supposed to be a good feeling? Did lovers kiss like this? She wouldn't know, because she'd never had a lover before, let alone a boyfriend of any sort. But she decided that if this was Sasuke, whatever he did would be considered good.

She could feel him mapping out her mouth, and suddenly the room seemed that much warmer. The back of her neck dotted with perspiration, and even his breath on her lips was hot. Her chair screeched against the floor when she pulled herself closer to him, completely forgetting where they were. His fingertips grazing her cheek, his other hand at the small of her back and only inching lower…She swore to God, only he could make her feel this way.

They weren't close enough. Their bodies were still separated, even if only by a few inches—she wanted closer, _needed_ closer…

There were many times that she had dreamed—during the night _and_ the day—about this moment. Kissing Sasuke—kissing _Sasuke_!—and having him accept her like an equal…Despite all of this time, she still hadn't thought that it was possible. She was left flustered, not exactly knowing what to do, as she was inexperienced in this area. All of this was just overwhelming her.

His hair was so soft between her fingers, his lips so unbearably perfect…

He pulled away.

Sakura's eyes snapped open, breaths heavy and hair dishevelled…and she stared at him. She couldn't believe this person…this person who didn't even _look_ like Sasuke because they were still transformed, could do these things to her. That small flame in the pits of her stomach continued to burn, but as the seconds ticked by, died down to only an ember.

She opened her mouth, and found herself unable to say anything.

"You should go back." She knew it was wishful thinking on her part, but she honestly thought that he sounded somewhat embarrassed and flustered. "You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow."

On the third night, Sakura was naïve. And Inner Sakura never failed to remind her that she probably always will be.

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**A/N: **Much thanks to xx. false - deception for beta reading this entire fic. It's complete, now. You deserve a break. :D

Now that I mention it, why don't you do her a favor and visit her page? Read a fic or two, and drop off a review. Her link is on my page, and she's also under my favorite authors. :) It's pretty effortless; all of her works are pretty short. She'll love you to bits.

Most of you have probably read it, but if you haven't, check out _Like VitaminWater_ by ANGELforSHOW. I don't know _what's_ so good about it, but it's got me hooked. Even inspired me to start an AU of my own—but it won't be out for a while, so don't really anticipate it, 'kay? XD

Also quoting ANGELforSHOW, nice people review. :) It kind of made me sad when the reviews in chapter two were half as many as the reviews for chapter one.

09-07-09: Edited.


	4. iv

**Dreams  
**_the fourth night._

* * *

Everyone had a different perception of nightmares.

A child's nightmare might consist of the bogeyman in the closet, or the monsters under the bed. Naruto's nightmare might consist of him letting down all of his loved ones. Sasuke's nightmare might consist of the image of his slaughtered family.

Sakura's nightmares? One wouldn't think that she had many nightmares. She rarely did—but when those rare times arose, it was always the same one over and over again.

Naturally, it revolved around Sasuke. Even after years of absence, his effect on her had never worn off. His effect on _everyone_ had never worn off.

Sakura wasn't afraid of losing him. Given, that was a terrible thing—but, she had to admit, their situation could be a lot worse. What she was glad for was the fact that Sasuke left to do something. He left because of his rage to fill his role as an avenger.

She had dreams where Sasuke isolated himself from all the people who loved him, became a talented shinobi who only did his missions—and then died of old age, or maybe killed in action, and that was the end of that. It might not seem frightening to many people, but to Sakura, it was the most horrifying of all. Because in those dreams, Sasuke didn't care. He didn't care about anything—he just lived, followed his orders, and never did anything beyond that. Never went out, never got married…

It was very typical for someone like her. Sakura's nightmares usually consisted of Sasuke not caring about anything at all—not her, not his clan…not even his brother's death.

Because dreams where Sasuke didn't care were the most terrifying of all.

**x**

The next morning, after packing up and a breakfast of ramen at the ramen stand on the corner (Sakura had insisted), they left the village without any goodbyes.

For a while, it went well. There were brutal slice marks on some trees that Neji had identified as Suigetsu's sword, which previously belonged to Momochi Zabuza. The name struck a chord in Sakura's mind, and she was reminded of their first C-rank mission. It was the first time she had ever seen Sasuke and Naruto work together; it wasn't something she could forget easily.

A little ways away from the village—about one or two miles, she approximated—they stumbled across something very disturbing. Shikamaru shared a few glances with her as they landed amongst the trees, the stench of blood almost overwhelming.

Three men. Three _dead_ men. Sakura recognized them as the ones she and Shikamaru had the misfortune to bump into the day before.

"Sasuke_-kun_ sure is a violent one," Inner Sakura snickered, mocking the suffix that she tacked onto the end of his name. Although it couldn't be determined if Sasuke really was the one who killed them, there really wasn't another option to believe. Who else would kill people like that? She was sure that every member of her squad recognized the bloody indent-like wounds in their abdomens; it could only be produced by the Chidori.

"Look!" Tenten pointed at the trees to their left. "There are blood marks on the trees."

"Do they really take us for stupid?" Shikamaru shook his head, hands shoved in his pockets. Sakura couldn't see much through the slits of her mask, but she was sure if she looked in the right places, she'd find splotches of red here and there, eventually leading right back to Konoha.

She glanced at her teammates. "Do you figure this is Sasuke's doing?" It seemed easy to drop the suffix from his name now, but she was sure when she saw him again, it'd return the way a boomerang would: inevitably.

"Most likely." Neji straightened himself up. "Come on, let's move."

Neji was usually the first to catch the signs of the trail Sasuke left behind, so Sakura took this time to clear some things up in her head.

She wasn't sure how Sasuke was going to kill Itachi with her around; the last time she checked, he had wanted to kill him himself, without anyone's aid. It was puzzling for him to request for help at a time like this, when his brother seemed to be within his reach.

There was the problem of whether or not they would find him, too. Itachi was the same as Sasuke; if he didn't want to be found, he wouldn't be found.

The younger Uchiha had been very vague in terms of his plans. All Sakura knew was that they were returning to Konoha—other than that, she was more or less clueless. How were they going to determine Itachi's location? Was he going to stay outside of the village, or inside? Given, it'd be much safer inside, if only he was able to sneak in—

She rolled her eyes at herself. So _that_ was where she fit in the plans. She would help him sneak into Konoha. It wouldn't be a surprise if he even stayed at her house during the nights.

"He's just using you," Inner Sakura said in a singsong voice. As of late, she'd been rather irritating; Sakura was planning on locking her in a corner of her mind.

By late evening, they were rather close to Konoha. It was much too dark to continue following the trail, even with Neji's Byakugan, so then set up camp for the night. Sakura sighed; she _liked_ the idea of being able to shower before going to bed.

After an entire day of travelling, she felt rather worn out. Being an excellent kunoichi, she could've continued for a couple more hours at the very least, but that didn't mean she didn't want to rest. As soon as dinner was cleaned up, she unrolled her sleeping bag and slipped herself inside, eyes open as she listened to Neji's plans for the next day.

"If we wake up at dawn, we'll reach Konoha at around noon." The Hyuuga's brow was furrowed, as if he was thinking deeply. "No matter where the trail leads, Sakura and Tenten will go and notify Hokage-sama with our findings. We'll need the same amount of firepower both inside and outside of the village, in case they lead us off. Things will progress from there. Understand?"

The other three teammates nodded in unison, and Sakura couldn't help but yawn widely. She was ready to sleep. There was no intention to talk to Sasuke tonight; who'd know what would happen, then. She didn't know how to face him after their little…exchange the night before.

She fell asleep long before anyone else did.

**x**

_Sakura muttered irritably to herself as she made her way towards the training grounds. Naruto was on a short mission, and Sai was nowhere to be found. That was typical for the artist, so she wasn't surprised when she didn't find anyone at the training grounds. It was disappointing, though; she hadn't trained with Naruto in a long time._

_Knowing Kakashi, he'd be half an hour late or so. He had already improved himself a little, minimizing how late he was from hours to less than one now, but it still bothered her, nevertheless. She didn't particularly like waiting when there were better things for her to do._

_She caught the kunai thrown at her from behind between two of her fingers. "You're late," she snapped playfully as she turned around, finding her former teacher sitting on a tree branch._

"_I saw black cats and ladders everywhere I went…"_

"_Liar." The familiar smile met her lips as the silver-haired shinobi leapt to the ground, his visible eye crinkling with faint humor._

_Kakashi surveyed the deserted training grounds. "Just us today?" Usually, the team would meet once in a while just to train. It would be different each time; there might be limitations, or they might go all out. Sometimes, they had teams, and at other points, it was every man for himself. At first, Naruto had been worried that Sakura wouldn't be able to keep up—but she soon proved him wrong about that._

_She nodded. "Just us." She was tempted to just drop onto the grassy ground and chat, but she was sure he wasn't going to tolerate that._

"_How's it going to be today?"_

_She didn't feel much like thinking or deceiving or whatever it was that shinobi did. "Taijutsu. No chakra, no Sharingan."_

"_Tired?"_

_She sighed, nodding slightly. "Just a little out of it. I kind of miss Naruto…"_

_There was a hint of amusement in his voice. "Well, don't get distracted, because I'm not going to go easy on you." Without a warning, he charged at her, and her eyes hardened with determination, lips curving into a grin._

"_Right back at you."_

_She had no doubt in her former teacher. Nowadays, only he and Lee could beat her at taijutsu—and sometimes Sai, depending on his mood. She laughed when she landed a punch right on his mask, sure that it would've knocked out a tooth or two if she had used just the slightest bit of chakra._

_Her little celebration was cut short when he promptly kneed her in the stomach. "I told you not to get distracted," he reprimanded impishly._

_She wasn't sure how long they fought for, but by the time they called it quits, she was ready to drop down and fall asleep. She and Kakashi sat on the ground, regaining their breath._

"_You're sure full of energy today," she commented as she looked up at the sky; perfect weather for Shikamaru's cloud-gazing. Her legs were stretched out in a completely unfeminine manner, her hands supporting her body as she leaned backward._

_The silver-haired shinobi chuckled. "I have to make up for Naruto's absence."_

_As she turned towards him, her eyes widened slightly in surprise when she found a splotch of blood on Kakashi's mask. "You're bleeding," she pointed out, gesturing towards his mouth._

"_I cut my lip when you punched me. It could've been worse."_

_Sighing haughtily, she heaved herself from her position and sat herself on the man's lap, roughly pulling down his mask without asking for permission. His bottom lip was cut rather badly. "Huh. Didn't think it'd make that much damage. I'll heal it."_

"_It'll get better in a couple of days. Hardly a waste of chakra." The Copy Ninja didn't mind having her see his face—she was a medic, and only she, along with a selected few, including Tsunade, had the honor to witness his actual nose and mouth. It wasn't anything outstanding, but Sakura had to admit that the way his entire face was proportioned made him very handsome._

_She smiled. "I have enough to waste." Promptly raising her hand to hover over his mouth, the warmth of her chakra began to glow under her palm. He sighed wearily, but remained still._

_In just seconds, the cut had disappeared, and she gazed proudly at her handiwork. After running her fingers gently over the bottom lip to check for any abnormalities, she pulled up the mask to conceal the man's face again. "Remember to wash it when you get home. It'll stain if you leave it in for too long."_

_His tone dripped with his usual wry sarcasm. "Yes, mother."_

_Despite their strange relationship that could most definitely cross the lines of friends, lovers, and family, Sakura couldn't help but love the man, anyway. She saw him the same way she saw Naruto, Sai, Tsunade, and a small number of other people:_

_She couldn't live without him._

**x**

On the fourth night, Sakura felt.

Apparently, Sasuke had different ideas about talking. He didn't wake her this time; he made sure she woke up on her own.

The all too familiar feel of his chakra probed at her, and her shinobi instincts immediately told her to pry open her eyes. His chakra was only familiar for the shortest of moments, though, and at first, she thought that she had dreamt it.

"You should keep your chakra masked at all times, you know," she mumbled sleepily as she rolled over, burying her face into the crook of her arm. She honestly didn't feel like talking today. A frown met her lips when she noticed she wasn't in her sleeping bag, the way she should be.

"No need to worry about me."

She didn't respond. Having found a comfortable position on the cold and slightly damp forest floor, she was just about to drift off to sleep again until she felt a warm hand at her back. "Don't sleep yet. We need to discuss some things, first."

She sighed heavily. "You talk, I'll listen." The truth was, she didn't really want to look at his face, in fear of blushing madly from embarrassment—that, and she was honestly too tired to do anything more. With her willpower, she was sure she could've gotten up if she _really_ had to—but did she really, now? Nah.

"Choosing sleep over your precious Sasuke." Inner Sakura laughed. "That's unexpected."

He didn't hesitate to start. "You're arriving in Konoha tomorrow, I suspect. What are your plans? I need to act accordingly."

She racked her brain for the information needed. "Tenten and I are going to go report to Tsunade, regardless of where the trail leads," she managed to force out, voice raspy due to her dry throat. "She's probably going to send out a search party for you composed to ANBU. I'll most likely be part of it, since I'm part of the official team searching for you."

"When will you return home?"

Her shoulders made an awkward movement; an attempted shrug. "After the report, unless I'm assigned a shift immediately."

There was a short silence, and she embraced it gratefully while the Uchiha thought. The lack of thinking was always nice when she was tired. "Alright, Sakura. Continue to do as you're told. We found my brother's trail leading straight into Konoha, so we'll set _our_ trail so it circles around the village. It'll evade some of the ANBU forces. Don't worry about how I'll get past the border guards; I'll be in your house before the next day."

A flash of apprehension flickered through Sakura's mind, and she was reluctant to accept the fact that she wasn't as sleepy anymore. "If Itachi's in the village, that means Naruto's in danger…"

"Knowing the dobe, he'll probably hold out before I find him. It's not like he doesn't have people to protect him."

She groaned lightly as she rolled over onto her back, blinking a few times at the bright light of the waning moon. "But, still…if I'm not there…"

"Don't worry about it, Sakura. He'll be safe." To her surprise, she felt his warm hand envelope hers. Such an act of intimacy was never heard of for someone like him; Sasuke was an egotistical, demanding person who took what he wanted, when he wanted. She gazed their intertwined fingers inquisitively, the familiar feeling of butterflies fluttering in her unsettled stomach.

"You're holding my hand," she pointed out obviously. "I'm probably dreaming." She muttered the last part, but didn't doubt that he heard it, anyway.

She didn't look at his face in fear of what she'd see, but she could still hear the smirk in his voice. "Would you like me to do other things than just holding your hand?" The suggestive words made her shiver, but before she even had time to respond, the warmth left her hand and she felt sensations elsewhere.

Inner Sakura growled. "The bastard probably intended to do this from the start."

Feeling lips pressing against her jaw line, her eyes closed, almost in content. His hands felt around her ANBU vest for a moment until he found the zipper and promptly pulled it down. His lips found their way to her earlobe, and the combination of his teeth and tongue against her skin caused her breath to quicken.

There was no doubt that she was completely awake now.

Her hands took hold of the grass on the ground, unsure of where else to grab. She'd be damned if anything like this happened to her before.

A warm hand slipped under clothes and met with her bare skin. She squeaked from surprise, but mostly from embarrassment as he cheeks flushed madly. She wasn't even wearing a _bra_; it wasn't necessary for her ANBU uniform, and it only got in the way. She felt him smirk against her skin when he seemed to realize that, fingertips brushing the bottom of her cleavage.

"Sasuke-kun," she gasped, feeling him trace the underside of a breast. "We can't do this…not out here…" The thought of being caught be someone—_anyone_—was humiliating.

But all thoughts were erased when she felt his tongue licked the shell of her ear. She couldn't find any word to describe it, other than _sensual_. That, in itself, made her cheeks heat up even more. Doing such things out in the open—in fact, doing such things _at all_…

Her breathing increased more when she felt his hand creep upward. Every nerve in her body was on fire, completely alert and aware of what he was doing. Heat pooled in her lower abdomen, and her body subconsciously arched upward slightly into his hand.

Her heart seemed to momentarily stop altogether when his fingers reached a nipple.

The grass was so, so cold underneath her, and the air was even colder—or maybe she was just incredibly warm. Her lips moved clumsily against his when he kissed her, almost unable to breathe as his fingers tweaked that little nub.

"You like this, don't you?" he breathed huskily into her ear. She wasn't able to form a coherent sentence to respond.

Inner Sakura was slightly speechless as well. "He's going to fuck you in the forest," she said plaintively after a long pause. "You're going to lose your virginity amongst bugs and rodents, and very possibly your teammates."

Slight fear and embarrassment—if she wasn't embarrassed enough already—flitted through her mind, but disappeared when she slowly opened her eyes and found Sasuke repositioning himself so he had his legs on either side of her. Maybe she was just imagining it, but she thought his dark eyes were glazed over with…with _something_…

She trembled when his hand disappeared, and she even breathed a small sigh of relief. Perspiration lined her brow in frustration, and her entire body tensed when his hand landed on her lower abdomen.

She thought she could burst on fire.

"This is…hardly appropriate," she managed to rasp out, though she knew—they _both_ knew—how badly she wanted it. Her morals said _no_, but her body said _yes_. Surely, this intimacy wasn't part of their deal…

But that coherent thought, simply put, _fled_ when his hand inched lower. Her breath hitched, and the entire world seemed to freeze that moment. She waited, and waited, and waited for those fingers to reach their destination, no matter how _wrong_ and _unruly_ it was—

A long, soft moan resonated in the quiet forest.

Her eyes widened in surprise. Did _she_ make that sound? She trembled, wanting the fire in her body to be put out. This feeling; it was only burning her until she couldn't think properly anymore. If she could satisfy this feeling…

And then he disappeared. The warmth hovering above her vanished, as if he was never there in the first place. She lay there; panting, vest unzipped and shirt riding halfway up her torso. The forest suddenly felt so unbearably empty, and she was even tempted to cry. The heat pooled in her body diminished, but only little by little as the seconds ticked past.

She didn't know how long she stayed there for, but after gathering all of the willpower she possessed, she hauled herself to her feet, fixed her clothes, and stumbled back to camp.

On the fourth night, Sakura felt. She felt the feelings, she felt the sensations…she thought she felt it all.

**

* * *

**

**A/N: **Much thanks to xx. false - deception for beta reading this entire fic. If you have the time, go check out her works—they're great! :D She's under my favorite authors.

I'm terribly sorry this chapter was so short—I seemed to have accomplished everything I wanted to say fewer than four thousand words. I'm trying to work towards longer chapters.

Your reviews are great. They make me so happy. :D Thank you!


	5. v

**Dreams  
**_the fifth night._

* * *

There were nights when Sakura didn't dream at all.

Those times were the ones that were the easiest to get by. As soon as she fell asleep, she would be engulfed by a comfortable black slumber, and the hours would fly by in a matter of minutes.

She would like to think that during those times, she was at peace.

**x**

It wasn't a surprise for her when they discovered the trail circling around Konoha the next day. As planned, Sakura and Tenten were sent into the village to report back to the Hokage.

The streets were lively. During their lunch hour, many people were shopping or eating, and she felt slightly detached, as she was wearing her mask and not able to participate in any of these festivities. She was sure Tenten felt the same, as the weapons mistress was turning her head occasionally and watching the villagers for long moments. It was difficult to imagine that an S-class criminal was lurking somewhere within the masses of people.

She knew she shouldn't have been recognizable with her mask on, but then again, she was the only one around with pink hair. She stopped in her tracks when two hands covered the slits of her mask, rendering her momentarily blind. "Guess who!"

The familiar voice brought a grin to her face. "Nice to see you, too, Naruto." She turned around and greeted him, and he pulled her into his arms for a brief hug.

"I didn't expect to see you back so soon. How was the mission?"

Her brow furrowed, but he wasn't able to see. Did he know what she was assigned to do, yet? "It's still happening. I'm reporting to Hokage-sama first."

The frown on the blonde's face was very much visible, and she couldn't help but think that something was wrong. "So you haven't heard, yet." The cheery aura he held just moments before disappeared, and she wondered what was up.

"Heard what?"

He shrugged. "I suppose Tsunade-baa-chan will tell you. I'll walk you guys there and wait for you outside, okay?" After getting an okay from Tenten, the three of them headed towards the Hokage tower together.

Naruto was quiet the entire way. Sakura eyed him from time to time, worried about what news she might hear. It took a lot to silence him.

When they arrived at the door of Tsunade's office, he made himself comfortable by leaning against the wall and crossing his arms. They knocked, and when a distant "Come in," was heard, he nodded. Swallowing, she followed behind Tenten and shut the door behind her.

The woman sitting at the desk had her hands folded, resting her chin on them. She looked stressed, she noted. "Sakura, Tenten."

"We're here to report, Hokage-sama." The weapons mistress beside her straightened herself up, and she followed suit.

The woman nodded. "Report."

Sakura started. "Uchiha Sasuke's trail began near the border of the Country of Fire and the Country of Wind. From there, we discovered that his trail led him back to Konoha. Hyuuga Neji and Nara Shikamaru are currently following it now on the outskirts of the village." It felt so strange to say Sasuke's name with such professionalism and authority.

"We suggest sending out at least two platoons of ANBU forces," Tenten continued. "Sasuke returning here means that there's a high likelihood of Uchiha Itachi being nearby. Uzumaki Naruto is in danger, as well as the entire village."

The Hokage didn't respond for a very long moment. "Tenten, Sakura…your squad hasn't heard the news yet, since you were out on your mission…The information arrived just one day after your departure." She paused, as if finding the words. Sakura tensed. This was probably what Naruto was referring to.

What could possibly be the problem? She couldn't think of anything that might cause her shishou to be in this state.

The woman took a deep breath. "I would like you to inform Neji and Shikamaru as soon as possible, if they haven't seen me by the time you find them. Uchiha Itachi…" her brow furrowed even more, "…is dead."

Sakura stared.

"W…What?" She opened her mouth and closed it again, unable to find the words. "Dead?" Dead, as in…lifeless? Not breathing anymore? Heart having stopped beating? Cold? Gone?

"What else does dead mean?" Inner Sakura asked dryly.

"When did he die?" Tenten asked, without skipping a heartbeat.

"One day before you set out."

She felt lightheaded. What did that mean? If Itachi died before she even _saw_ Sasuke again…Did he lie to her when he requested her help? What did everything she had done up until now been for? She clenched and unclenched her hands, beginning to perspire underneath her mask.

Her mind was in turmoil. She couldn't even think straight right now, let alone the reason _why_ Sasuke did the things he did. She had the lips he kissed, the hair his hands ran through, the body he _touched_…and yet, she knew absolutely nothing…

"So…" She swallowed. "If he's dead, wouldn't Sasuke return?" That was what he had promised, right? That if he killed Itachi, he'd come back to Konoha. "He _was_ the one who killed him, right?"

Tsunade sighed. "Without a doubt. But due to circumstances…things might be a little different."

"What do you mean?" Sakura noted the Tenten seemed much calmer about this than she was. Of course; she wasn't devoted to Sasuke—she barely even _knew_ him. This was just another mission, with the safety of her village at stake. She wished it was the same for her.

The Hokage looked as though she was going to shoot the next thing that moved. "Due to certain…reasons for the Uchiha massacre in the past, and how many of these reasons that may have reached Sasuke's ears…he might not be returning on peaceful terms." Before Sakura could ask, she answered her question for her. "It's not something I can tell you, but I can assure you that Konoha will face the point of annihilation if he isn't stopped."

She didn't know how to respond to that. It seemed that Tenten didn't know, either. But they weren't required to talk. She saw the woman's fists clench and a vein in her temple throb—literally.

"I'll send ANBU out right away. You two go and rest for now; your shifts begin tomorrow morning with the search party. Remember: don't kill him."

After saluting, the two kunoichi left the tension-filled office. Naruto was still in the same position as when they went in, and he looked up at her wearily. It was only then did she notice the faint bags under his eyes, and the way his aura seemed damper than usual.

Tenten nodded at her. "I'll see you tomorrow, then. Meet at the front gates?"

"Sure." Once the weapons mistress left, Sakura began to feel lightheaded. Naruto straightened himself up and put a supporting arm around her shoulders.

"Konoha's going to be annihilated," she whispered brokenly, barely audible. She was on the very verge of tears. Her entire body shook, and the feelings of fear, and…_betrayal_ welled up in her. Sasuke left her. _Again._ And she was stupid enough to actually believe that he would stay.

_Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me._

His grip on her tightened. "No, it's not," he told her resolutely as they made their way out of the tower. "We're going to protect it, and we're going to win. Sasuke only has how many people following him? Two? Three? We'll kill them, _and_ we'll get him back."

She admired his determination. Where did it all come from? She used to be just like him, _knowing_ that the Uchiha would come back one day—but all her energy was gone. She couldn't find the will in herself to believe anymore.

"I don't know, Naruto…" She shook her head, grateful for the mask she wore. She was sure he would break at her expression right now. "I honestly don't know anymore."

He stopped walking and turned her around so she faced him, his hands on her shoulders. The bright sun shone down on them in the lively streets of the village, but she still felt so incredibly cold. "I don't know why Sasuke would want to destroy Konoha, but this is his home. He has no reason to stay away anymore. We can convince him; I'm sure of it."

He stared at her for a long time, until she finally began to relax under his touch. Just seeing that face…she couldn't say no to him. She couldn't tell him what had happened. In fact…it surprised her to realize that she had never planned to in the first place.

She forced a smile, even though he couldn't see it. "Only you can look forward like that." He knew she had surrendered to him—but only temporarily.

"Let's get you home and clean you up. Then we can go somewhere."

Although she had no idea where they could go under circumstances such as this, she listened to him. There was no use in worrying about it now. "Will you be part of the search party?"

"I'm the only one in it who won't be part of the ANBU." She heard the frustration in his voice; not being able to be where she was, where the majority of their friends were. He was one of the few in their generation who hadn't made it to ANBU status yet—those who wanted to be in it, anyway.

She didn't respond; rather, let him guide her to her house. She didn't want to think right now, didn't want to talk right now. It was something she needed to sort out on her own.

When they arrived, Sakura let Naruto in. He made himself comfortable on the couch in her living room while she headed to her room to change and shower. Wearily tossing her weapons holster onto her bed, she ignored the strange clinking that sounded in it. They were probably rusty and a little dirty; she'll clean them tonight.

It felt good to peel off her uniform. Having worn it for almost one week straight made her skin dry and somewhat itchy. Her bed looked awfully inviting, but she knew Naruto was waiting outside for her, so she grabbed her trademark red outfit and headed to the bathroom.

The hot water loosened her tensed muscles considerably. She relaxed a little as she rubbed the soap over her skin, feeling the tears stinging her eyes when the inevitable thoughts came.

Sasuke. Sasuke lied to her. He _lied_ to her. She had given herself to him so willingly, and he _lied_.

It seemed very much like him, actually. He was always so good at masking his feelings—it was _her_ that was the bubble of emotions. It was _her_ that cried as easily as she smiled. It was all her—and he had used it to his advantage. He _knew_ she would follow him. He had planned everything out.

And she had helped to bring him one step closer to her home's obliteration.

She couldn't even begin to feel disgusted with herself. She shouldn't have listened to him. Inner Sakura had warned her—hell, _everyone_ had warned her—that this might happen. But she had so much confidence in herself—too much, apparently.

"Don't make me say I told you so," Inner Sakura sang. "You're fucking _busted_."

She stared at herself in the fogged up mirror. The hair that he had complimented…the bangs that he had claimed he liked…those were lies too, weren't they? Saying that being a medic suited her, saying that she could've handled those drunkards easily…He probably made all of that up just to soften her up even more. The only time he was acting himself was most likely when he told her to shut up.

She wanted to shatter the mirror.

She stepped out of the bathroom and into the living room, drying her hair with a pink towel. Naruto didn't look the slightest bit impatient as he had a lazy smile resting on his lips—even though they both knew it wasn't entirely real.

"You ready?"

She held up a finger. "Just one more thing." She tied her hitai-ate securely on her head—a last pathetic attempt to show her loyalty to Konoha. "Okay. Ready."

He took her around town—nowhere special, really. They visited Ino in her flower shop, and Lee in his usual training area. They then met up with Kakashi and Sai at Ichiraku for a late lunch. Even though Kakashi's eye still crinkled in his same amused manner, and Sai's smile—fake or not—still unnerved Naruto when he commented on his penis (or, really, lack thereof), she felt distanced. It wasn't the same. Not after what she had done.

She felt someone nudge her. She turned to the pale artist, who was sitting beside her. "You haven't been eating your lunch. Is it because you don't like it? You could try mine, if you like." He had a small bunch of ramen in his chopsticks, as if offering it to her.

She watched him for a moment. "Oh, okay," she said absent-mindedly, much to Naruto's surprise. She opened her mouth, and Sai fed her his lunch right off of his own chopsticks.

"K-K-K-Kakashi-sensei…" The Jinchuuriki looked green. "Did she just…?"

The silver-haired jounin stared wordlessly. "Yes, I think she did." She had no idea why they were looking at her like that. Shrugging it off, she took a small bite out of her own bowl.

A little while later, Naruto had been called for a short briefing with the Hokage, as he was the only one who wasn't within the ANBU to join the search party. Sakura was left alone with Kakashi and Sai, so they headed to their regular training grounds.

She politely declined their offer to train with her, and watched quietly from the sidelines as the two shinobi practiced their ninjutsu. She was only half paying attention, as her mind still swarmed with doubt, confusion, and maybe unnamed emotions.

It was still hard to believe. Impossible, even. Sasuke _lied_. It all made sense, but she couldn't find it in her to accept it.

Everyone looked so normal. It was if it was just another day, and she was just taking a break while Sai and Kakashi continued training…Sai's ink beasts and Kakashi's Raikiri—and soon, Naruto's Rasengan and shadow clones, too…

"Will there be something else for you to explain to me today?" Surprised, she snapped out of her reverie to find her pale teammate sitting beside her.

Over the years, Sakura had taught the boy many things that required feelings. Laughter, tears, frustration, boredom…And little by little, the artist had grown accustomed to these feelings. There were points when his smile was a little different, and she would wonder if it was a genuine one or not. Sometimes, she even saw him furrow his brow, as if trying to match a name to an emotion he was feeling.

She leaned back against the tree, sighing heavily. "I think today…I'll tell you about love."

Sai tilted his head to the side in question. "Love?"

Nodding, she turned towards him, crossing her legs. This was a good opportunity to get her mind off of things for a while. "Yeah." She looked upwards at the branch that protruded from the tree directly over them. "Kakashi-sensei, would you like to listen, too?"

"I'm fine from here, thanks." She was sure the man knew everything she did about love. And even now, she wasn't sure if she understood it all. He sat on the branch lazily, enjoying his Icha Icha Paradise.

"Love is a feeling of devotion," Sai told her. They always started with him reciting what he had learned from books. "Usually only for one person. Many people claim that it's hard to find, and it is similar to infatuation, but lasts a lifetime. Lust can also be mistaken for it."

Sakura blinked. Lust…

Her cheeks began to redden at the thoughts from the night before.

She cleared her throat. "Right. You can see this when Naruto's with Hinata. Hinata's loved Naruto forever, and he only recently began to return the feelings. But love doesn't have to be mutual." She saw Inner Sakura roll her eyes at the irony. She's teaching Sai about _love_, this feeling claimed to be the best in the world, when she herself was still tangled in its web. "You can love someone even if they don't love you back."

"Like the way Lee-san loves you?" A blush crept to her cheeks—a much more innocent one this time—as she thought of the taijutsu user. Maybe that wouldn't be considered _love_…

She nodded. "Yeah. Basically, you would sacrifice everything you had for that person…you care about them…" She listed off the random things that came to mind. "You'd do what they wanted you to do…" Her eyes widened slightly in surprise when she realized just how well those words fit her.

Inner Sakura laughed loudly. "You think you're actually in love with him?" She didn't need to ask for confirmation on who _he_ was.

"Sounds more like obsession to me," Sai deadpanned. At this, she couldn't help but laugh tiredly.

"Yes, obsession could sometimes be mistaken for love, too."

There was silence for a moment, until he spoke again. "Did you love Sasuke-kun?" As usual, his sense of timing was out of wack. She supposed that was one thing she liked about him; he didn't wait to be told. If he wanted to know something, he'd just ask.

A soft smile met her lips. "I thought I did."

"Do you love him now?"

She had to think about that one. "Yes. Yes, I do."

**x**

And then, there were the nights when she didn't sleep at all.

She decided that they were both good and bad. Good in a way that they kept her from the nightmares she might face in her sleep, and bad in the way that she sometimes reminisced haunting memories—and, of course, the dead exhaustion the next day.

Those nights were always the longest. She would watch television for a couple hours to pass the time, until she found that she wasn't even paying attention to the screen anymore. Then she'd fix herself a midnight snack—usually some fruits or vegetables—and settle down with a book. Or maybe she would clean her weapons—or just stare at the picture of Team Seven on her bedside table.

Yes, she had to admit, her nights awake and alone were very lively.

She found it essential, though. Sometimes, she spent these all-nighters with Ino, and they would just spend their time talking like normal people would, disregarding the fact that they were shinobi; tools of war, and trained to kill.

After all, she was only human.

**x**

On the fifth night, Sakura was alive. However, she didn't feel very alive when she finally arrived home in the late evening.

She was exhausted. She more or less wanted to just plop herself down on the couch and do absolutely nothing. She could feel it; even though she was completely worn out, it was probably one of those nights where she'd toss and turn in bed, unable to fall asleep.

But then again, it was just a hunch.

Making her way into her room, she found her weapons holster on her bed where she had left it, and got ready to clean up. She opened the holster and dumped the various tools onto her bed, frowning when they sounded different. Well, not technically different—they sounded pretty normal—but different as in…different from the way they sounded earlier today.

She counted them and organized them into categories: kunai, shuriken, senbon, exploding tags. Nothing was missing—and she didn't expect anything to be. After all, she hadn't even used any of these weapons.

Her chest rose and fell with a sigh, before her entire body tensed on instinct.

_Not now,_ she begged soundlessly, though she knew no one would give her mercy. _I'm not ready._ "G-Go away, Sasuke-kun. I don't want to see you." How he managed to slip into the village and find her house—or even remember where it was—was beyond her. And at the moment, she didn't care. Her heart was racing, thoughts confused and incoherent.

He chuckled softly in amusement. "Not even going to ask me how I made it here?"

"Don't think I'm stupid enough to not notice a little extra weight in my holster while travelling. I've transformed into weapons quite a few times myself during missions. Where are your friends?" She forced her voice to be dry, and she wondered if he saw right through her.

The Uchiha scoffed lightly. "Searching." It was only now that she realized how vague his answers really were; how little he had actually let on.

"Searching for who?" she asked quietly, taking a kunai and running a finger over the smooth face of the blade.

"Uchiha Itachi." The way he answered made it seem like he already knew what was going on inside her head. Which he probably did. She honestly, honestly thought he was more human than this.

She turned around. "Uchiha Itachi's corpse, you mean?" With the flick of her wrist, she flung the kunai straight for his head—his soft, soft raven locks and his flawless face. She knew he'd dodge it; with one tilt of his head, the blade embedded itself in her doorframe, and not his forehead.

She heard the smirk in his voice. "And I thought you wouldn't believe it."

"How can I not?" Her arms fell limp to her side as her hands clenched into fists. Her gaze dropped to the ground, as if she couldn't stand seeing his perfectly deceptive face. "When Shishou tells me it's true…when Naruto reassures me that it'll all be okay…when Kakashi-sensei and Sai do their best to act normal just for me…" The tears that she had held in the entire day began to spill; rolling down her cheeks and dripping off her chin. Her sobs were soft, though; sporadic and breaking the silence of the room.

"Sakura." In just a moment, he stood in front of her, hands gripping her shoulders tightly. She wasn't sure if it was out of anger or comfort. "I wouldn't lie to you." She didn't know if she should believe him. His voice was just as smooth, just as expressionless as usual—but she never thought of it as _expressionless_. She just thought of it as _suave_. As _collected_.

"So, what, you're saying the entire _village_ is lying to me?" she demanded, her head snapping up. Her vision blurred, and she only partly saw Sasuke's face, but she was sure he didn't hold any feelings in those endless eyes of his, anyway. They were crimson right now, and she was sure, foretelling the vision of her friends' pools of blood.

There was a short silence. "Yes."

Her jaw dropped. Literally. To say that and actually think she would believe him—

But he cut off all of her thoughts with a kiss. It was hard and demanding—as expected of him—but she managed to lift her hands up to his chest and shove him away.

"Don't _do_ that to me, Sasuke-kun! I'm not the Sakura you used to know! I don't think the way I used to, and I most _definitely_ don't feel the same towards you as I did back then!" It didn't take long to realize that she was only blabbering whatever came to mind first. Whatever she was saying had a high possibility of not being true.

He watched her with a minimal amount of curiosity as she roughly wiped her tears away. "I'm not a little girl anymore! I'm not as simple-minded as I used to be, and I value my friends a lot more now. I love Naruto and Sai and Kakashi-sensei and Ino…" As she continued, her voice continued to die away. She stared desperately at his face, searching for something—_anything_—to make her believe. To end all of this confusion and—must she admit it—pain.

And then suddenly, he did the unthinkable. His lips curved upward—not one side more than the other, like a smirk—and his eyes crinkled slightly. She even saw the slight indents in either of his cheeks. Dimples?

Uchiha Sasuke smiled.

"I wouldn't lie to you, Sakura," he repeated resolutely. His words, his voice, his finality bounced off the walls, and she felt as if she would crumble.

"Bullshit," she spat, and for the first time in a long time, Inner Sakura nodded in agreement. She couldn't find the will to hurt him—she never could—so instead, she turned around and promptly took the edge of her bed sheets. With a well-practiced flick of her wrists, the sheets moved with a sudden wave, and the weapons sitting upon it flew in different directions towards the other side of the room. Some embedded into the roof, others the wall, and some just clattered onto the floor. She didn't care. She'd clean it up tomorrow.

Without even changing into her pajamas, she climbed into bed, burying her head under the pillows and only hoping that Sasuke would take the hint and go away.

Naturally, he didn't.

Instead, much to her chagrin, he climbed into bed _with_ her. Her mortified expression was apparent as she tried—_tried_—to push him away. "Get out, Sasuke-kun. I don't want to see you anymore. Just let me go."

"You were the one who couldn't let _me_ go." She felt his strong arms snaking around her figure and pulling her close to him. She couldn't find the will to struggle _then_—not with his faint scent reminding her of the nights before, with his warmth engulfing her so completely.

She fought to hide her face. "Are you that desperate for me to kill you?" Her voice was soft.

"You wouldn't even try." She didn't know if implied that she was weak, or that she loved him—and she figured she was better off not knowing. His lips pressed against her hair, and she could feel his warm breath when he whispered, "Everything will be okay."

Will it be, though?

"I…still don't think this is right," she said uneasily, fidgeting a little in his arms. "I've gone against the village enough already. I've done enough for you. I didn't turn you in, and I don't intend to. So won't you just go now?"

He didn't respond—instead, brought a hand to her chin and lifted her up for a kiss.

A…soft one, she soon realized. Not a demanding one.

Inner Sakura rolled her eyes. "There is something seriously wrong here, Don'tcha think?"

She melted at his touch. She wasn't sure if she wanted to, or if it was just an instinct her body had acquired over the past little while. Or maybe, she'd always had it, but never knew, because up until five days ago, Sasuke would never even _touch_ her.

Pressing her body closer to his, she squeezed her eyes shut, as if hoping she wouldn't have to see this monster that was in front of her. This monster that was eating away at her, slowly but inevitably…

His thigh eased between her two legs, and he brought it up, dangerously close to…Her cheeks flushed.

"Don't do this…" Her desperate plea was cut off by his lips. She didn't fight when he shifted his position so he was hovering over her, and it was only then that she acknowledged the fact that it was because she didn't want to—not that she couldn't.

So maybe, just for one more night, she'll let him indulge in her…After all, one of them was going to die in the end, anyway…

She wondered if it would be better if she was the one who was dead.

It wasn't clear to her as to when the clothes came off. It wasn't clear to her as to when the familiar heat pooled in her lower abdomen. But it _was_ clear to her as to when the pain started.

"Fuck," Inner Sakura snarled in disbelief. "Do they even _come_ in that size?"

Her arms wrapped around his neck and she pressed her face into his skin—his perfect, flawless skin—only slightly beaded with perspiration, trying, _trying_ to ignore the feeling of being ripped apart…

The large hands that held her waist were the only anchors she had left that kept her in reality. Her breaths grew heavy, and she was even tempted to cry. Just trying to keep those thoughts and regrets and feelings away, just for tonight, _just for one night_…

She couldn't remember when it began to feel good. Or if it really felt good at all. Their bodies moving together in a continuous rhythm, steady and endless…Just knowing that this was _Sasuke_ and knowing that _Sasuke_ was touching her, _Sasuke_ was being intimate with her—the _Sasuke_ she had always thought she loved—and maybe still did…Maybe that made it all worth it.

She tried to let herself go. For the most part, it worked. Just letting herself being swept away was much easier than resisting. The only sounds in the room were their heavy breathing, her sporadic moans and his occasional grunts. And, maybe, just for now, that would be okay.

On the fifth night, Sakura was alive. It might not have been her ideal vision of being alive—but she was alive, nevertheless.

**

* * *

**

**A/N: **Much thanks to xx. false - deception for beta reading this entire fic. Go check out her works. Like, now. XD

The chapter is longer this time! Yeah! :D This story is coming to a close. Wow, it just went by so fast. Two more chapters, and the end.

Reviews are always nice.


	6. vi

**Dreams  
**_the sixth night._

* * *

Sakura had to admit something. Indeed, her dreams meant something. A lot of the time, she couldn't even remember what her dreams were about—she could only recall the ones that occurred more than once—so she could never really determine anything from them.

She supposed she was good at detecting genjutsu for a reason. Genjutsu was nothing more than an illusion—which was, maybe, what dreams could be considered as.

She thought she had a good grasp on her dreams, and maybe what they were telling her. When she dreamt of Naruto, Kakashi and Sai, she knew they were saying something along the lines of, "Treasure them more!" When she dreamt of Sasuke, she got the message, "He'll be back soon."

Yeah. She _thought_ she had a good grasp on her dreams.

**x**

When she woke up the next morning, he was gone.

She couldn't expect less from him. At least she wouldn't see him again unless in battle; she was going to begin her shift today.

She lay in bed for a long while, not wanting to get up. Her spot on the mattress was so warm, and she was sure to be cold once she left it. She could still feel his touches flitting over her skin; warm and light, giving her indescribable feelings.

Maybe they were good feelings. Maybe they were bad. She wasn't sure.

Sighing, she finally hauled herself out of bed, frowning at the scratch marks on her arms and thighs. As she went around gathering her clothes, she winced at the pain in her walk.

Inner Sakura laughed. "He really did you in, didn't he?"

When she entered the bathroom, she saw that a towel sat on the counter. Not her usual pink one—that was where it should be, hanging on its hook—but a crimson one that she kept when her pink one was in the wash. She glanced around, sighing slightly at the humidity and the steam on the mirror.

He really didn't ask for anything. If he wanted it, he'd just take it.

Heedless of the slight mess the Uchiha made in her bathroom, she prepared her shower. She was somewhat disgusted in herself; she could still feel the hopelessness from the night before, just wishing for him to take her away and never let her remember. And the thing she hated the most was that she wasn't as disgusted as she knew she should be.

She was certain that scrubbing her skin with as much soap as possible wasn't going to remove the memories of him—his lips, his voice, his words—but it was worth a try. It made her feel better about herself.

She could put everything behind her now. Sasuke was gone, and it was only a matter of time before they found him. And if he ever did appear before her again…She shook her head defiantly. She would fight him. The numbness that he had sent her into with everything that he did had ended. If she couldn't win against him, she would report him. No, she'd report him first, and _then_ fight if it was necessary—

Rubbing the fog away from the mirror, she was mortified to see bite marks decorating her neck and shoulders. Did…Did he do all of this? She could barely remember.

Without thinking, she brought her hand to the reddened areas and promptly healed them, as well as the scratches on her arms and legs. She didn't need reminders of him. She had enough of those already.

"How was it, Sakura?" Inner Sakura taunted. "Did you like it? Did it feel good?"

Even if she wanted to answer, she couldn't.

After pulling on her ANBU uniform, she stared at her room and the weapons that decorated it. She supposed she should clean them up; she couldn't win against Sasuke with just her fists and willpower. Up until now, she didn't realize how _little _weapons she had; how little defense she had.

She glanced at her clock. It was about time for her to meet Tenten at the main gates. Quickly stuffing the last shuriken into her holster, she grabbed her mask, put it on and headed out.

When she arrived, the weapons mistress was already there, waiting. Naruto stood beside her, and he gave her a strained smile.

"Ready to go?"

They answered with firm nods.

**x**

"_Sakura, who did this to you?"_

"_I did!"_

_She was terrified. As she stared at him, skin marked with the devil's signature, she couldn't help but begin to feel fear. Not fear for herself, or the one he was walking towards—but rather, _him_. She had never seen him like that, and she never wanted to. It was horrifying._

_Her head pounded with pain, and one of her eyes was swollen. Her arms and legs were stinging from the cuts she received from kunai, so she sat there, helpless._

_That wasn't the Sasuke she knew. The Sasuke she knew would never let loose such emotion; he would never hurt someone when they're begging for him to stop, he would never have that hungry grin on his face when he was fighting. And most of all, he would never show any concern for her._

_This wasn't the Sasuke she knew._

"_Stop it…" Tears welled up in her eyes, and she began to cry. Cry the tears he could never cry, expressing the pain he could never express._

_His body was trembling in her arms. She wasn't sure if it was from the power or the surprise—maybe both. But she was so glad, _so glad_ the black marks on his skin began to retreat._

_It was the only time he had ever listened to her._

**x**

Sakura blinked slowly, registering the sight before her.

She didn't even begin her search, and it was already over.

Inner Sakura crossed her arms. "What the fuck?"

A small area of the wall surrounding Konoha was damaged. Badly. It looked as though parts of it were cracked, others charred, and she swallowed hard when a large chunk of it was just plain _gone_.

Two ANBU members whom she recognized as Neji and Yamato held Uchiha Sasuke, who wasn't showing any form of resistance. Her jaw was tempted to drop—she was sure Naruto didn't hesitate to do so. Out of the corner of her mask, she saw the blonde trembling slightly.

"That was…fast," she finally managed to say. "I didn't think we'd even get anything today."

A male around her age, also with a mask on, approached her. She didn't recognize him until he began to speak. "Haruno Sakura, you are now under arrest for committing treason against Konohagakure."

It was then that her jaw really dropped. "Sai—what?" She felt someone take hold of her arms. "Tenten?" Hesitantly, she turned to the captured Uchiha, who met her gaze blankly. "Sasuke…-kun?"

"Bet you he turned you in." Inner Sakura nodded as-a-matter-of-factly.

But…how would that benefit him? If he was using her to infiltrate the village, what good would it do him if she was found out as well? Unless it was just out of spite—spite for making him touch her body, to kiss her, to say such comforting words—to _smile_ that seemingly genuine smile—just so she would believe him. If only she wasn't so hard to persuade…

He didn't say anything to her, and she was glad for it. She wouldn't have known what to say in response, anyway. Her mind was flooded with thoughts of the night before…

Her cheeks blushed a bright red, and she was ever so grateful for her mask.

"Treason?" She started slightly at Naruto's voice. She had completely forgotten he was there. "What do you mean?"

Sai cleared his throat and read from the scroll held in his hands. "It is proven that Haruno Sakura has come into contact and conversed with missing-nin Uchiha Sasuke, and did not report back to squad captain Hyuuga Neji, or the Hokage." He paused, tilting his head. "There are pictures, too…" After studying a certain photo, he held it out for the world to see. She could just hear that smile in his voice. "See?"

It was her and Sasuke. Lying in bed. And, thank God, it was before they were nude—but there was also a high probability that they had more pictures…

But if they _did_ have pictures, that meant that Sasuke wasn't the one who turned her in. "How…?"

"Neji and Shikamaru were a little suspicious of you. Ever since the night you fell asleep against the tree," Tenten offered. "They never had any real proof that something was up, so I didn't believe them, but apparently Neji kept his Byakugan on for some of the nights and saw something. So he and Shikamaru reported to Hokage-sama after we left…"

Sakura opened and closed her mouth continuously. They had noticed…

Neji nodded. "Take them to the holding cells." She felt Tenten murmur a low apology to her as she began to lead her back into the village, right behind Sasuke, Neji and Yamato. Naruto followed indignantly behind Sai, refusing to be forgotten.

"What's going on?" he demanded to the artist, who was calmly tucking away the scroll.

"Everything has been explained just moments prior. But I suppose I can't expect you to concentrate, when you're too busy mourning the loss of your penis."

You could tell the Jinchuuriki was mad when he didn't take the time to retort angrily with an insult of his own. "Stop fucking with me, Sai! What do you mean Sakura-chan came into contact with Sasuke and didn't report it? That makes no sense! She wouldn't do that!"

"It is apparent that she did."

She began to feel tears well up in her eyes. She hated it when she turned her back on her friends like that. They _trusted_ her, and yet she was still weak enough to give in to Sasuke and his stupid words…his stupid words and stupid voice and stupid actions.

Naruto grabbed their pale teammate's collar, snarling. "Sakura-chan wouldn't do that! Someone framed her!"

She and Tenten paused for a moment for them to calm down. Sai calmly took the blonde's hands in his, and pried his fingers off of his clothes. "Why don't you ask her yourself?" It was then that she realized his hands were shaking. Even if only slightly, they were shaking, nonetheless. Did she affect him, too…? After years of being emotionless, some of those feelings she had taught him were finally leaking out. At this point and in this situation, she wasn't sure if that was such a good thing.

The blonde turned towards her, cerulean eyes sparkling with hope. Just waiting for her to confirm his thoughts.

"I…" She faltered, voice cracking. "I'm sorry, Naruto…"

He looked as though his world had shattered in that one moment. The throbbing in her chest made her think her heart split in two, too.

**x**

"_Your forehead is so wide and charming. It just makes me want to kiss it." She blinked in surprise as Sasuke walked towards her. He laughed sheepishly. "Sounds like something Naruto would say, doesn't it?"_

_She managed a laugh of her own, refusing to admit that the lame line actually made her heart flutter. "Yeah, it does."_

_It was the first time he had ever complimented her…even though she found out about a year later that it was actually Naruto transformed into Sasuke._

**x**

She was placed in a holding cell with nothing more than a plank on the wall that could be used as a bench. Her weapons were confiscated, and chakra seals were placed on the door.

She had never felt so miserable and broken in her life.

"At least you have company," Inner Sakura pointed out. She lifted her head and looked past the bars of her prison to the cell across from hers, where Sasuke sat on the same bench she was resting on. She wasn't sure if she would consider that company.

"Sasuke-kun, why did you let yourself be caught?" she asked hesitantly. She wasn't sure if she wanted to talk to him right now.

He glanced up at her, obsidian to emerald. "Did you think I wanted to be?" His tone was harsh, cold; completely different from the night before. She scolded herself for even thinking about it. He was never compassionate from the start. She should've learnt that by now.

"Don't _talk _to me like that," she hissed, hoping to sound venomous. "I'm only human. I don't know everything that goes on in that fucked up mind of yours."

He didn't respond, and she was glad for that.

The blissful silence only lasted for a couple of minutes, until footsteps began to resonate down the cold, empty hallway. When they stopped, Sakura looked up and found Sai, changed back into his normal attire. She couldn't describe the sudden relief she felt in seeing someone _normal_, someone who she _knew_ should be there. She had been sitting across the hall from Uchiha Sasuke for a mere _hour_, and she was already going mad.

When Sai looked at her, a ghost of a smile met his lips. "Out of all the things you've taught me, you've never even approached the subject of sex. Will I ever get to hear about it?" At this statement, her cheeks blushed a furious red, though she was glad for it. He wasn't taunting her—he was relieving her of the tension she was feeling.

"Of course," she responded haughtily. "Once I get out of here." _If_ she got out of there.

His smile widened. "Will I get hands on experience?"

She rolled her eyes. "Ask Ino for that."

After their short banter, the artist brought out a key in his hand, and for a moment, she wished the key belonged to _her_ cell, and that maybe she was somehow free and not accused of treason. But that moment soon fled when he turned around, and instead, disabled the chakra seals on _Sasuke's_ door and unlocked _Sasuke's_ cell.

She watched, not sure of how to feel as the door closed behind him with a definite clang. Seeing those two together was strange; they took the same spot in the team, so she always saw one without the other. Never together like that.

Sai's back was facing her, so she wasn't sure of he was wearing his smile or not. "It's nice to see you again, Sasuke-kun. I had hoped to meet you on better terms."

The Uchiha didn't respond. It was almost expected that he wouldn't. So her pale teammate continued. "Did I ever tell you that I hate you?"

She blinked. Whether or not he had the capability to hate yet was beyond her, but hearing him say something as blunt as that tempted her to laugh. Maybe he did listen to her sometimes, after all.

"_When you think a girl's ugly, you don't call her gorgeous! Most of the time, being honest is a lot better than covering it up with sweet words. But, in certain cases, it might be better to say nothing at all._

"_Certain cases, as in, with you and Naruto?"_

"_Nah. Just be blunt. Oh, and be blunt with Ino, too. She needs a slap in the face from reality."_

The word _hate _seemed to catch Sasuke's attention. Naturally, it would. "And what is it that I did to trigger this hate?" His tone was challenging. She took a deep breath to calm herself.

Sai turned slightly, pointing towards her. "That."

Sasuke chuckled darkly. "What exactly do you mean?"

"Look at her. She held onto feelings and bonds for you, so you play with her mind and stick her in a cell." His voice was surprisingly calm. In fact, everything about him was surprising. The last thing Sakura expected him to do was to come here to defend her.

The Uchiha sighed. "But you have to admit, it was entertaining."

She heard the distinct sound of flesh to flesh before she could even begin to feel hurt from the words. She blinked and stared—because she was _sure_ she had hallucinated that—but there Sai was with his fist held out, ready to throw another one at the prisoner sitting on the bench calmly.

"You don't deserve her," the artist said quietly before stepping out of the cell door and locking it behind him. He glanced at her one last time before he left.

How he ever got his hands on the keys to Sasuke's cell was beyond her, but she supposed he had a way of slipping past the rules. After all, he was from Root—everything he did was (supposed to be) rationalized and calculated. Never fuelled by emotions. That was why the higher-ups trusted him.

Sakura was eternally grateful for him. A few years back, she would've never thought that there'd be a day when she would thank Sai.

It was quiet for a long time, until she said, very quietly, "You deserved that."

"You have no right to justify what I deserve and what I don't." His voice bounced off the walls, cold and harsh.

"I do," she responded defiantly. "I might not know what you've done after you left, but I know how you affected the people here and I know that a single punch is not going to make up for all of the pain that you've caused."

"You speak of this pain that I've inflicted people, and yet, you have no idea what I went through." He spoke with no hesitation, as if he had the lines written out in front of him to read out loud. She glanced up and him and found him leaning against the stone wall behind him, staring idly at the ceiling. Maybe counting how many stone slabs there were altogether.

Her head dropped, and she inspected her feet. "I know you've been hurting, too, but that doesn't give you the right to be selfish."

She felt his hard gaze on her, and she met it just as fiercely. "You've _never_ understood how I felt," he growled. And for the first time that day, she was glad for the bars that separated them.

She scowled, surprised that she actually felt a slight tinge of anger towards this man. "Never understood how you felt? If you mean betraying and being betrayed, I know _exactly_ how that feels, Sasuke-kun. Don't think I'm as oblivious as I was before."

He was about to respond, until a voice interrupted them. She was so caught up in their slight argument that she didn't even hear the footsteps.

"My, my, lovers' quarrel?"

She blinked. "Kakashi-sensei!" Again, she was relieved at having someone walk in on them. As the silver-haired shinobi turned towards her, his visible eye crinkled with that knowing smile.

"Hey, Sakura. Feeling alright?"

She shrugged. "It'd be better if I was out there and not in here." And after a pause, she asked quietly, as if not wanting to know that answer, "What's going to happen to me?"

He didn't hesitate with responding. She didn't know if it was because she was allowed to know, or if he just wanted to tell her. "Hokage-sama is searching for loopholes. She knows you, Sakura—we all know you. You would've never done that unless you were forced." She swallowed guiltily at the last part. But she _wasn't_ forced. That was the problem.

Sasuke gave a 'ha' if amusement. "Favoritism, huh? This village is still as weak as ever."

She was surprised how the Copy Ninja could was able to stay calm. For a moment, she even thought that he was going to blow a punch at him, like Sai had. "Hey, Sasuke. Long time no see. How are you?" The lightness in his voice was detectable, and she knew immediately that the Uchiha found him incompetent.

The prisoner looked away indifferently. "What are you here for? Come to scold me? Bring me to interrogation?"

Kakashi held up a finger. "Congratulations! Indeed, you're right. To interrogation we go!" He turned towards her, all traces of his previous humor gone. "You come, too, Sakura."

Her blood ran cold. Interrogation? Her? _She_ was being interrogated, too?

She swallowed the painful lump in her throat as she waited at her cell door, watching her former teacher undo the chakra seals and unlock Sasuke's door. Promptly clicking chains onto his wrist—that probably did the favor of sucking chakra out of his system—he released her from her cell as well. She noted gratefully that she didn't require those chains.

The taller man walked in between them, and her hand reached out for his, feeling the contrast between his warmth and her chilled fingers. As if telling him quietly, _I'm afraid._ His grip tightened on her hand, and he didn't let go.

Sakura had only been in these quarters of the Hokage tower once or twice, to heal shinobi that had infiltrated the village and needed to be kept alive for interrogation. So when she arrived at the first interrogation room, seeing Morino Ibiki there, she felt eerie shivers running down her spine, wondering if she was going to end up like those shinobi—or worse, if Sasuke was going to end up like them.

A smirk met the interrogator's lips. "This brings back memories. I remember this kid from the first chuunin exam years ago." His eyes held a hungry expression, and Sasuke met them with silent defiance. "I'll take care of him from here." Grabbing the chains that held the Uchiha's hands together, he pulled him into the interrogation room and shut it loudly behind them.

And Sasuke didn't even look back at her before he disappeared.

Sakura stared, hand tightening in Kakashi's. They were beginning to grow clammy with fear. "What's…going to happen to him?" she asked, voice no louder than a whisper.

He began walking back the way they came, and he had to tug a little at her to get her going. "If he cooperates, he might be put under arrest for a couple years, and then probation for even longer. If not…" He paused, as if he didn't want to say it. "They're going to execute him."

She couldn't breathe for a long moment. "Even Shishou agreed…?"

The man looked down at her. "Hokage-sama has never been close to Sasuke. She didn't have the chance to become close to him. She can't give him exceptions like she can to you and Naruto."

"So…" She took a deep breath. "What's going to happen to…me?"

"Hokage-sama has been talking to the elder council, trying to rid you of your punishment—or lessen it, at least. She's looking for a loophole."

"Did she find one?"

His large hand holding hers was comforting. "No, but I think I did. We're going to talk about it now at her office." She felt more comforted as she was led up the stairs back to her usual surroundings; the warm colors of the hallway, and even a medic or two that she recognized. She thought she heard the clinking of interrogation tools echoing off the hard walls behind her, and she shivered slightly, but ignored it and continued walking.

Whatever happened, Sasuke would be alright. He had to be.

**x**

_She couldn't believe it. Naruto was staring at Sasuke so intensely, as if he had the _right _to…She wanted to punch the lights out of him._

_The blonde inspected him and leaned even closer, speculating every single detail of his perfect face. Even _she_ had never been so close before…_

_And then their lips met._

_It was a kiss that sealed their fate as Team Seven._

**x**

"Shishou…" Her bottom lip trembled when she saw the woman who had trained her for three years straight. She couldn't find the right words—if there were any right words in the first place.

"I'm sorry, Sakura." The woman sounded stressed and tired as she stood with her back to them, staring out the window as she often did when she was stumped. "I can't stop it."

There was a long silence, until Kakashi spoke up. "I think _I_ can, though."

Their attention turned onto him and he shrugged his shoulders, letting go of her hand—a sign that it was safe, now. "I mean, now that you think about it, it makes sense, right? Sasuke's got the Sharingan, so he can practically do whatever he wanted to her."

Tsunade's brow furrowed. "Explain."

"The Sharingan has two eyes, correct? The eye of insight, and the eye of hypnosis. The eye of insight is used to copy moves, and the eye of hypnosis is used to show illusions. Am I wrong?" His mask curved slightly, showing his lips growing into a faint smile.

The woman looked unconvinced. "We're all aware of the Sharingan's strength, Kakashi. Get to the point; my patience isn't going to hold out for much longer."

"Patience is a virtue," the Copy Ninja said cheerfully, although he continued with a tone of seriousness. "There's also one more ability that isn't as well known, simply because it isn't used as often. Sakura, you should know; the eye of hypnosis also has the ability to alter thoughts."

The world seemed to stop at that moment.

"Given, Sakura already has a soft spot for Sasuke, but it's obvious that in the circumstances that she met him on the mission, she would immobilize him and bring him back. Her thoughts only needed a little push in the right direction for her to fall right into Sasuke's hands." Kakashi shrugged. "It's kind of simple, once you think about it."

Sakura recalled the first night, after she fainted. Fainted, knocked out, whatever. At the moment, it didn't seem to matter to her much. She _did_ have a dream of when Kakashi was fighting Zabuza, and she _did_ take note of his eye of hypnosis.

Her dreams _did_ tell her things. God, why the hell did she not take notice before?

"Because you're stupid," Inner Sakura conveniently answered for her. She mentally rolled her eyes.

"So you're saying…" Tsunade's eyes were narrowed, signalling that she was deep in thought. "That Sasuke manipulated Sakura to do what he wanted." The sparkle returned to her hazel eyes. Maybe there was hope for her after all.

Kakashi nodded. "The possibility is very high."

"Sakura." The Hokage's attention averted to her, and she tensed under her gaze, determined to give her the right answer. "Do you remember if Sasuke had his Sharingan on whenever you began to submit to him?"

_Submit._ What a sick word. But, slowly, as she thought back on it, she nodded her head. Save for maybe the night he…he…She couldn't seem to find the phrase—

"Felt you up in the forest?" Inner Sakura offered in her mock polite voice.

Sure. Save for the night he felt her up in the forest, she was sure she saw the Sharingan every time. She couldn't control her primal urges very much—especially since she had never been touched that way—but she felt that that little piece of information didn't need to be shared. "It was on," she confirmed, her breath leaving her lips with a relieved whoosh.

"So all we need now is proof," the Hokage said, smiling softly.

Proof? Where the hell can they find the proof? Definitely not in her memory. Maybe Ibiki could dig a little deeper with his work…She shivered when she thought of what would happen to Sasuke. Strange, she mused. Now that he wasn't around, she couldn't quite feel the same affection for him anymore.

She supposed it was the work of those blasted eyes of his.

"I have a little proof, but not enough to back it all up," Kakashi piped up. "Sai was talking to Sasuke a while ago, and the entire place is under surveillance. I could take the tape out and find the part; Sasuke indirectly admitted to fooling Sakura."

Did he? It was probably the part about it being entertaining. She tasted bitter on her tongue as she thought of it. _Entertaining._ That was what he found her.

The Hokage nodded. "Sakura, I'm going to have to keep you in your cell for now, until further proof is found. I'll have the chakra seals removed, though, in case something happens and Sasuke's team comes around. We still haven't found them, yet."

She nodded. That was understandable. Turning towards Kakashi, she gave him a silent thanks, knowing that she could probably never repay him.

She really, really couldn't live without him.

**x**

On the sixth night, Sakura was calm and collected.

Being half-freed, she was allowed visitors. It came as a surprise to her when Tsunade confirmed that these visitors could come _inside_ her cell and stay there, as long as they didn't mind being locked in there with her while visiting.

After the news went around, Naruto and Sai promptly walked into her cell and closed it behind them, hearing the lock click and still have grins on their faces. Well, Naruto did, anyway.

"You guys are crazy to actually want to be here," she told them, crossing her legs on the bench.

The blonde laughed. "It'll be like a sleepover! I already brought all the stuff!" He promptly brought out his pack and began pulling things out. Manga, pillows, blankets…Actually, how any of that even fit in there was beyond her.

Sai sat against the wall, and she was surprised how he didn't get cold at all when his bare skin pressed against the chilly surface. "Sakura, how are you feeling?" It was ironic for a boy who didn't have any feelings in the first place to ask something like that.

She smiled. "A lot better now, after what Kakashi-sensei told me and Shishou. I'm just worried about Sasuke-kun right now."

"I don't understand why you're worried someone who most likely has less of a penis than Naruto. Is it part of the love you have for him?" At this, said blonde reeled back to punch him in the face, and she laughed.

"He's still part of our team, I guess. I really don't want him to die…"

Naruto nodded in a business-like manner. "He's a bastard, but we began with him. He might've been just as bad as you, Sai!" He pointed accusingly at the artist, who merely smiled.

They talked until the early hours of the morning, and even with her anxiety poking her at the back of her mind, Sakura couldn't help but enjoy herself with her two teammates. Without a doubt, she loved them—more than she could probably love her real family—and for some reason, she was glad about that.

Just as they were about to turn in and give in to sleep, they heard the door at the end of the corridor creaking open, with some loud yells as well.

The three of them tensed, and waited until two figures approached. It only took her a moment to realize it was two figures all but dragging a third.

"S…Sasuke-kun?" she asked fearfully, rising to her feet and walking over to her barred door. In the dark, it was hard to recognize him, but his trademark spiky raven hair was easily outlined against the grey stone walls. Crimson dotted his face, and a trickle of blood left his lips, causing her to tremble slightly. "Did they…torture him?"

One of the figures turned, and she saw that it was an ANBU member. "What does it look like?"

She didn't answer.

She flinched when they threw him into his cell none too gently. Naruto and Sai came to stand on either side of her, and she reached out to grab both of their hands, holding them tightly, watching the figure lying there on the hard floor even after the two ANBU escorts left.

"Do you think they went into his mind?" she asked quietly, voice shaking.

"If they did, then they should have the proof that you're innocent," Naruto said in a low tone. "He's back, so I'm only worried about you, now, Sakura-chan."

She managed to smile to smile lightly, and turned to the artist on her other side when she felt his fingers twitch lightly.

His voice and expression gave nothing away, but his words were so heavy and full of emotion that she thought he might've burst from all of it. "I do find it hard to believe that I had to replace scum like him."

"He's not scum," she whispered quietly, but when it all came down to it, she didn't quite believe in her own words anymore.

"S-Sakura…" All three of their heads snapped up when that low, strained voice echoed throughout the level of the building. Sasuke struggled to sit himself up on the floor, and it made her ache so, _so_ much just to see him like that. Sasuke wasn't meant to be weak. Sasuke was supposed to be strong.

Her grip tightened on her teammates' hands. "Yes, Sasuke-kun?"

"I do…l-love…you…" Those words alone acted like a giant wind in her heart, sweeping up all of those feelings that had finally settled throughout the day. Passion, confusion, betrayal—and the pain. It felt like she was being torn apart—torn apart by him and her friends.

She pulled Naruto and Sai closer as some pathetic form of protection. When she locked eyes with the prisoner across from them, she was met with Sharingan and immediately turned away, sure that he was about to manipulate her thoughts again.

But nothing changed. The emotions raged on, and she was reluctant to admit that these feelings and thoughts were hers, and hers alone.

It was probably true that he manipulated her to do what he wanted, that he didn't need much effort. Just a little push, and she was there. It was like in the old days; she manipulated herself to become a love-struck fan girl, to become devastated at his leaving. It wasn't his fault.

Not entirely, anyway.

So she said and did the same thing that he said and did when she confessed to him, even though he was most likely lying to her, anyway. "Thank you, Sasuke-kun." And she turned around and tugged Naruto and Sai back to their pillows and blankets, going to sleep.

On the sixth night, Sakura was calm and collected. At least, she was on the outside.

**

* * *

**

**A/N: **Much thanks to xx. false - deception for beta reading this entire fic. Go and drop off a review or two for her.

Okay, no, this fic is solely and entirely SasuSaku. There's no KakaSaku, NaruSaku, or SaiSaku—although, SaiSaku _does_ intrigue me. The holding of hands was just a sign of their bonds that had grown over the years that I wasn't able to show all too well in the fic. It's all friendship.

Hm, I've developed a love for Starbucks as of late…XD

I'm working on another SasuSaku. It's an AU; romance/comedy, and maybe even a little fluffy—a huge contrast in comparison to this one. Put me on alerts, or something, if you're interested in it when it comes out. Check out my page if you want the summary.

Reviews are nice. Constructed criticism is loved.


	7. vii

**Dreams  
**_the final night._

* * *

Sakura had a nice sleep. In fact, the nicest one she'd had in a while. She couldn't remember the last time she slept with friends, but made a mental note to do it more often.

It was late morning by the time they woke up, due to staying up so late. She didn't mind, though; she was most likely staying in the cell the entire day, anyway. Naruto and Sai had confirmed that they would stay the entire time as well, claiming that they had nothing to do.

She didn't believe them, but accepted their company, anyway.

When they woke up, Sasuke was gone again. She doubted he slept well, if at all—if unconsciousness was even considered sleeping—and was worried about, not his well-being, but his life. It was difficult to lie or stay quiet with Morino Ibiki—but if you could, like she suspected the Uchiha to do, he might die before they give up and send him off to his execution. Every human had approximately the same physical limits.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto dragged out, waving something in front of her. She furrowed her brows and took it from him.

"Cup ramen?"

The blonde grinned. "Of course! A sleepover isn't a sleepover without the ramen!"

She rolled her eyes. "Tell me when you find some hot water, and maybe I'll have some, too." With that, she promptly began her breakfast of cereal and orange juice given to them by the ANBU guards.

They didn't have to wait long to be let out. Proof was found in Sasuke's mind that he did, indeed, use the Sharingan on her. At this piece of news, the tight grip on her heart loosened considerably, and she felt relatively at peace again. Now, at the very least, she still had a home to return to. She had friends that she didn't betray. It wasn't her fault.

Well, not entirely, anyway. But she was sure she could keep that little snippet of information to herself.

After Naruto cheered and cleaned up his mess, they all headed upstairs to the main level of the Hokage tower and stepped outside, stretching and enjoying the warmth the sun was providing.

Just as they were about to head back to their respective homes, Sakura caught a voice. And it wasn't saying things she liked to hear.

"We sucked him dry, Hokage-sama. Nothing left to take from him." She glanced over her shoulder and saw Morino Ibiki waving a hand carelessly at her shishou. "I would proceed to lock him up for another couple of years, but he refuses to do or agree to anything. Either he's plotting, or ready to die."

"They really should be discussing this in her office," Sai murmured under his breath.

Tsunade's brows knitted together. "What are you suggesting?"

"Execution. As soon as possible, and away from the general public's eyes. Killing the last Uchiha would cause an uproar." The interrogator paused, waiting for some sort of reaction. When he didn't receive one, he continued. "I suggest this afternoon."

"No way—" She clapped a hand over Naruto's mouth, and together, she and Sai pulled him away, with much effort.

"What are you _doing_?" the Jinchuuriki demanded when they dragged him into a nearby alleyway. "Do you guys understand they're saying? They're going to _execute_ him! That means they're going to kill him!"

Sai took out an empty scroll, a brush already dipped with ink, and began to write on it. When he was finished, he held it up to Naruto, where the word _execute_ was written. "To execute means to kill as a socially sanctioned punishment—" He didn't look the least bit surprised when the blonde hit the scroll out of his hand.

"He's going to _die_! Do you feel _nothing_ for him?"

Sai looked away from him and locked gazes with Sakura for a brief moment. "He deserves to die."

Naruto's attention was then averted to her. "Sakura-chan? You understand, don't you? We have to stop them! We have to tell Tsunade-baa-chan!" He grabbed her shoulders, almost desperately, and she felt her heart break a little more with the pained expression crossing his features. "Hey, Sakura-chan, say something! You love him, don't you?"

And much to her surprise, she found herself crying. She made no sounds, and there was no lump in her throat, but the tears were streaming down her cheeks in a way she had never experienced before.

Sasuke was doing to die.

Uchiha Sasuke was going to die.

The one person she was willing to give everything to ever since she was a child—_Uchiha Sasuke—_was going to _die_.

"No," she breathed, broken. "He _can't_ die. Sasuke-kun…" Her knees gave out from underneath her, and she collapsed into Naruto's arms. "Sasuke-kun can't…"

"We need to stop this," Naruto said, his grip tightening on her and tone deathly serious. "Sai, you coming?"

She heard the artist pause for a long, tense moment. "I do not care for him." Feeling Naruto tense up in anger, she brought her arms out and wrapped them around him, almost sure that their pale teammate had more to say. "But I hope that you would do the same for me if I was in a situation like that, so…"

Well, at least those two could agree on something when it really mattered.

So they took no time to turn around and race right back to the Hokage's office.

Naruto pounded on the door. "Oi, Baa-chan! _Baa-chan_!" After a few short moments of no response, he barged right in, patience clearly gone. She and Sai followed without hesitation.

They met with the Hokage sitting at her desk, downing a cup of sake. Sakura couldn't help but laugh sheepishly. She had a terrible habit of doing that when she was stressed. Actually, she did that when she wasn't stressed, too—depending on where Shizune was, anyway.

"Baa-chan, what are you _thinking_?" the blonde demanded, slamming his hand onto her desk. Tsunade didn't look the slightest bit fazed—she supposed she had to expect it sooner or later. "You're going to let them just _kill _him?"

"What else can I do?" She sounded surprisingly calm. "Do you expect me to help him when he plans to annihilate Konoha?"

"The village will be safe! I'll even offer to watch him, if you like! We'll have chakra seals on the door, ANBU standing guard at all times, the entire area under surveillance—it'll be _fine_!" She had to admire his determination. It was still as strong as ever, even after all of these years.

The woman watched Naruto as he continued to ramble on. "Sasuke has no use to us anymore!" she barked suddenly, causing the hair at the back of her neck to stand on end. "He was even put into our bingo book recently! He poses as a major threat to Konoha, and you think I can just keep him locked up? He's an _Uchiha_, Naruto, and I hope you understand that. Do you not think that I, as Hokage, should do whatever it takes to keep my village safe?"

Naruto took a deep breath, never once breaking eye contact with her. Sakura glanced at Sai uneasily, who held his calm façade amazingly. "He won't harm the village," he repeated, tone dangerous. "He's Sasuke. He _won't_."

Tsunade sighed. "Naruto," she said slowly, "you should understand the responsibility that comes with being Hokage, as you plan to take my place in the future. You have no idea what's going on in Sasuke's mind, and if you so happen to make the wrong mistake, the damage will be yours to take when everything is gone."

"I would still let him live."

The woman's hazel eyes began to harden. "Favoritism at this point is unacceptable—"

"That is the most hypocritical thing I think I've ever heard you say in my life." The entire room fell in silence for a moment, everyone staring at the blonde, who was practically radiating anger from his body. Sakura even thought she felt some of the Kyuubi's disgusting chakra.

Naruto didn't make a move to stop talking. "You say favoritism is unacceptable, but you let me go on that mission three years ago to check on Sasori's spy, even though you knew I might be in jeopardy. If I fell into Akatsuki's hands, that would be the end of the shinobi world as we know it. And yet, you're saying that at the risk of _one fucking village_, you're not going to even _try_ to save a shattered man?"

Sakura held her breath. She wasn't sure if she wanted Tsunade to allow Sasuke to live or not. She understood both sides; she wanted the Uchiha to live, but at the same time, she couldn't bear to have Konoha destroyed, knowing that she contributed to it.

She honestly didn't know what to think or do.

The Hokage stared at Naruto. And she knew, by the way the woman furrowed her brow, that her decision was final. "That's what I'm saying. I'm not going to save him."

"Then what was the point of even trying to get him back all those times?" Naruto shouted, gesturing wildly. "_Why_ did we even try, if he was going to die in the end?"

"Understand that it was _different_!" Her shishou was angry, now; she could tell. "At that time, Sasuke's goal was to kill Itachi, and wanted nothing to do with Konoha. This time, Konoha _is_ his target!" There was a tense pause. "He's going to be executed, Naruto. I'm not changing that. Be at the execution grounds this afternoon if you'd like to say goodbye."

It was final. She knew it was final. And she didn't know whether to feel relieved or afraid.

"Naruto…" She hesitantly made her way towards him, reaching out to hold his arm. "Come on, let's go."

The sight of her friend's tortured expression tore her apart. She had no idea what to say or do. In a situation like this, she couldn't even help herself.

_Sasuke-kun…_

Did she love him more, or did she love her village more?

_Why do you continue to hurt all of us this way, even when you're going to leave?_

**x**

When it all came down to it, Sakura wasn't sure if it was all real or not.

The past week flew by much too quickly for her to register it. The hours seemed like seconds, gone with a blink of the eye—it was surreal.

Inner Sakura snorted. "So, what, you expect to wake up snug in your bed when you're at the climax of this twisted dream?"

And in a way, she wanted to. She wished for nothing more than Sasuke to be a missing-nin again, and for Itachi to come back to life. That way, the younger Uchiha wouldn't be sentenced to death just hours—_seconds_—from now, and she wouldn't see this cruel side to him.

Or maybe she had always seen it subconsciously, but shoved it away.

Naruto promptly went home after they left Tsunade's office—to do what, she had no idea—and Sai disappeared, they way he often did whenever he wasn't needed. Sakura didn't return home—in fact, she went straight down to the basement of the Hokage's tower again, persuading the guards to let her through.

It wasn't much of a surprise when they did.

Sasuke wasn't in his cell when she arrived, and she didn't expect him to be. So she seated herself against the stone wall on the cold ground beside his prison, prepared to wait.

She went over a lot of things as the time passed by.

She did love him. As she had told Sai, she loved Sasuke unconditionally, and was willing to give him almost anything. She loved him…but she wasn't _in_ love with him. She cared about him the same way she did about all of her other friends; she was willing to die for them, willing to help them by any means—even if it meant bending the rules a little. And maybe her feelings for him were extended just a _little_…but not even past a silly infatuation.

But that was a mighty long infatuation.

She supposed all of the affection he had given her was payment for everything he had made her feel in the past. Although she was sure he didn't mean it that way, she wanted to take it that way. It was the only way she could.

Feeling emotionally burdened, she drew her knees up to her chest and hugged them, resting her forehead on her arms. It was cold down here…

She still couldn't believe he had manipulated her. For him to do something as taking advantage of her; she wasn't sure if he had lost everything he had ever lived for after that battle with Itachi, or if he really just never cared about her in the first place. She hoped it wasn't the latter.

But, reluctantly, she had to admit that it was a very Sasuke thing to do, and…perhaps she didn't mind the journey here as much as she should've.

She wasn't sure how long she had waited until they brought him back from their interrogation, or whatever it was that they did with him. She suspected it to be hours—but it really felt like seconds—and she was almost chilled to the bone from sitting down here for so long.

His ANBU escorts paid her no heed as they chucked him into his cell. She flinched when she heard his body collide with the hard ground, and waited until they left before she did anything.

"Sasuke-kun?" she asked tentatively as she crawled to the cell door. "How are you feeling?" She was actually slightly surprised that he could pull himself into a sitting position.

He looked terrible. Cuts and wounds marred his perfect skin, and the exhaustion under his eyes reminded her of another certain Uchiha she had seen years ago. His hair was dishevelled, his lips dry and cracked, and a good deal thinner.

"As good as a prisoner is supposed to feel," he responded dryly. She was glad he still had his sarcasm.

She gestured at him through the bars. "Come here. I'll heal some of your wounds."

He snorted lightly. "As if you weren't accused of treason enough." But he slowly made his way towards her, nevertheless. Pulling off her ANBU gloves, she reached through the metal bars and was surprised that she could actually reach quite a ways.

A light smile reached her lips as she started with his face. "I don't think Shishou will mind." She enjoyed the feeling of her chakra pressing against his skin; being able to heal him was one of the few things she was able to do to help him.

"Because I'm going to die anyway, right?"

The question hung heavily in the air, and she shivered at its somber tone. "Yes," she answered quietly. "I would rather you die looking a little healthier."

"Not going to try to save me?"

"After what you've done to me? I don't think so." She felt the tears prickling at the back of her eyes, and she forced them back, hearing Inner Sakura's mocking laughter ringing in her mind. "Knowing you, you probably have some escape route planned already. And if not, Naruto will most likely initiate some weird plan and get you away."

When his skin was the way it should be—pale and flawless—she moved to the cuts and bruises on his torso. They really didn't hold back; judging from the swelling in one of his elbows, it was probably broken.

It was silent for a few blissful minutes as she continued to work. She hesitated as her hand hovered over his elbow, wondering if she should fix it or not. Making him _too_ strong wouldn't be a smart thing to do…

"You wouldn't believe anything I say anymore, right?" The Uchiha looked careless as he watched the chakra in her palm flare up. One last parting gift, she supposed. If she didn't heal it, it most likely wouldn't function as well as it used to, if he survived.

She laughed dryly. "Do you expect me to?" Her eyes locked with his; emerald to obsidian. "If I don't, you can just _make_ me believe, right?"

"What if I wanted you to believe on your own?"

She pretended the words didn't faze her. Messing up once was more than enough to teach her that Sasuke would never be the caring man she had dreamt him to be. "Depends on what you said, I suppose."

"I do care about you."

Her chakra continued to weave into his arm, and she nodded dryly. "Uh-huh. And during my spare time, I dance in front of my mirror in nothing but my underwear."

"Really, now?" She glanced up at him, surprised that he would actually believe that—until she noticed the faint smirk on his lips. She blinked and stared, removing her hand from his elbow.

Inner Sakura seemed just as speechless as she was. "He just made a joke, didn't he?"

She rolled her eyes and took his arm, bending it in every way possible to make sure it was alright. "Yeah, Sasuke-kun. And let me tell you, I'm pretty damn sexy when I'm only in my underwear." His Sharingan was off right now, and he was going to die later, anyway; exchanging a few banters was alright, right?

"I'd say you're sexier naked."

At this, blood rushed to her cheeks and she glared at him, hands coming down to a rest on the cold ground.

She didn't believe his words for a moment. They were all lies—even if they were…nice lies. She had always wanted him to care about her the way she did about him.

She looked at him, afraid to lock eyes. But when they did, she could feel a painful lump in her throat and she was worried about crying in front of him. In a while, this face, this voice, this person she loved so much…would be gone.

"Are you scared?" she asked quietly

There was amusement in his voice. "I don't think I could be considered a shinobi if I was afraid of a hanging." When she didn't respond, he chuckled lightly. "But to have a pathetic ending like this wasn't at all what I had imagined."

"Sasuke-kun…" She reached out for him in between the bars, and he let her touch his face. "It's alright to be afraid."

"I am afraid of nothing, Sakura."

"Then…" She swallowed. "I'll be afraid for you." Her fingertips just barely grazed his skin, and she leaned forward on instinct. It was then that she wished these bars weren't there dividing them, and maybe she could feel him hold her one last time, even if it wasn't real—even if it meant more pain later on…

He chuckled wearily. "You're pathetic." But he leaned forward anyway, and allowed their lips to meet.

She didn't let him go. Her hand made its way to the back of his head and held him there. He would have to wait until she was willing to let go—and it wasn't going to be anytime soon.

His lips were so soft. Or, maybe she was just imagining it. She always saw Sasuke to be perfect, after all; to have flawed lips would be a little out of place. She controlled their pace; slow if she wanted to, fierce if she wanted to. She could feel her cheeks warming up, and her heartbeat quickening. It was delicious.

Her other hand reached out to grab whatever she could to bring him closer, but was surprised when it met with his hand. His palm pressed against hers, large and warm, and she felt weakened by his touch when his fingers intertwined with hers.

At this rate, she didn't know how hard the blow was going to be once he was gone.

**x**

The execution came too soon. She stood with Kakashi, Naruto, and Sai, a grim foreboding settling in her stomach. All of the other shinobi were there; Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, Shino, Hinata—even Gai's team. There were many others that she didn't recognize, but their hitai-ate said everything.

The execution stage looked so empty. She shivered as her eyes fell onto the rope that hung eerily, tied into a single loop. How many lives had it stolen before?

It was such an old and simple way of killing people, but still so effective…

"Naruto, I'm scared," she told him brokenly, turning towards him with tear-glazed eyes. "I don't want him to die…" They were a family. True; a warped, dysfunctional family, but a family nevertheless.

The blonde placed a warm hand in her shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll save him."

She sniffed, roughly wiping her eyes before the tears could fall. "But that'll be going against Konoha…"

"I don't care. We came all this way for him; I'm not going to let him die just like that and have all of our efforts gone to waste."

Swallowing, she managed to nod meekly. She glanced over at Kakashi, whose Icha Icha wasn't even in sight, completely somber. Sai seemed normal—as normal as he got, anyway. When he noticed her looking at him, he flashed his smile flawlessly. She was sure it was fake.

The crowd suddenly hushed, and her head whipped towards the execution stage. Her eyes widened when she saw Sasuke being led to the deadly rope in the center, wrists tied behind his back with chakra chains. She was sure he was drained right now, being kept just enough to stay alive.

Unbearable anguish began to well up in her. Memories began to flash in her mind; his kiss, the chuunin exams, saving her from those thugs, holding his trembling figure in her arms—his smile. A smile that looked as real and genuine as it could get.

No…

They brought him to the rope, and secured it around his neck. She could feel Naruto tensing beside her, ready to go at any moment. Kakashi's chakra wavered for a small moment from behind her.

_No…_

Tsunade stood at the side of the stage, while the executioner, masked, was at the lever that he would pull, which would cause the floor under Sasuke to drop and hang by the rope.

_No…!_

The Hokage cleared her throat. "Fellow shinobi. Today will be the day Uchiha Sasuke will be executed, due to betraying Konohagakure and plotting to destroy it. With this, the Uchiha clan will be eliminated."

She took a deep, shaky breath. This couldn't be happening. This _couldn't_.

Sasuke looked so peaceful. His eyes surveyed the audience, and when they locked with hers, he didn't remove his gaze. And maybe she was just imagining it because she was so desperate, but she thought his lips managed a final smile.

Tsunade signalled to the executioner. "Do it."

_No!_

Time stopped. Or maybe it just slowed down just for her. Just in her peripheral vision, she saw Naruto begin to move towards the stage. Her eyes widened as the man at the lever began to pull.

_Three…_

Desperation bubbled in her stomach. All this time, and she _still_ couldn't do anything for the Uchiha. She had wanted to let him know he was loved all those years ago and he didn't have to avenge _anyone_, but it was never enough to reach him. She had wanted to save him from his hatred by bringing him back to Konoha, but she was never strong enough. She wanted to save his life…and look at her now, useless and on the brink of tears.

"Two," Inner Sakura offered, contributing to her silent countdown.

She scanned the crowd. Ino looked just as dumbstruck as she felt, and, in fact, everyone in her generation was speechless. She was sure none of them wanted Sasuke to die, despite his actions. He meant too much to all of them.

And finally, she looked at Sasuke again. His eyes were still on her, and she squinted when she thought she saw his lips move. Was he saying something?

_I do love you…_

No. That wasn't right. Something was off.

_I _did_ love you…_

Her heart felt like it stopped beating. Her breathing came to a halt, emotion welling up completely and overflowing from her eyes.

_One._

The floor from beneath the man dropped, and a muted gasp rippled through the crowd as his body fell slightly, hanging by his neck. His head fell forward, suddenly limp.

"No…" The tears were overflowing uncontrollably, and Naruto had already disappeared from her side. If she went over to him right now, she could still save him. Only his spinal cord snapped to detach all his nerves, so he wouldn't feel himself suffocating. If she removed him from the rope and healed him, he could breathe again, and he would live…

But her eyes widened when the body disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

A…clone?

"_A shinobi must be able to deceive, fool the enemy, and hold his act out until the very end."_

She could see Neji's Byakugan on and scanning their surroundings immediately. By his expression, she could tell that his eyes told him nothing. The real Sasuke must've been far away by now. Perhaps out of the village.

He was gone with no explanation, no traces, no nothing.

Just like a dream.

Inner Sakura punched the air, suddenly very lively. "Yeah! _Shannaro!_"

The ANBU members on guard took off immediately. The loss of Uchiha Sasuke was a huge shock, and he could be anywhere right now—maybe on the outskirts of the village, ready to strike with his little group of talented shinobi.

She didn't know whether to laugh, or to continue crying. Relief swept over her like a tidal wave, and at the same time, indescribable fear took over for her home, her friends, her family.

As of today, they might all die.

Everyone dispatched immediately. All of the spectators were shinobi, anyway, and Tsunade issued an immediate S-class mission to catch Sasuke at all costs. The grounds were suddenly empty, leaving only Sakura, Kakashi, Sai, and Naruto. Said Jinchuuriki stood at the very front, just a mere foot or two away from where Sasuke was supposedly hung.

And she was so dreadfully afraid.

She turned her head to look at Kakashi. "Do we…?" She couldn't bring herself to say the words. _Do we go after him, too?_

Her former teacher sighed wearily. "Is there anything else we can do?" No one could simplify things the way he could. Just in those few words, she was told that he didn't want to chase after Sasuke, that he was tired, _so_ tired of everything—but the Hokage's demands were the village's law.

And, so, after a prolonged moment, she took off with Kakashi and Sai, Naruto trailing behind them.

Sakura wasn't sure if the tears were blurring her vision, or if she was just growing lightheaded from hyperventilating. In any case, she wished Sasuke would just take this chance and leave while he could—saving them in the process.

She couldn't believe that just an hour or two ago, she was in the heart of the village, kissing the prisoner, expressing her feelings the only way he could accept them—with him kissing her back with as much intensity. She wasn't sure if she felt passion in those kisses—how did people detect that, anyway?—but they had to pull away to breathe several times.

It sorely disappointed her to admit that he was like a craving that she could never satisfy, and that she would always, always be craving him until the end of time.

"Split up," Kakashi told them all, voice strangely empty. "There are more shinobi in the area; if you encounter Sasuke, there should be others nearby to help." With a single nod, the four leapt apart from each other with practiced synchronization that they had acquired over the years.

Immediately, she turned and headed towards the main gates—not because she knew he'd be there, but because she _hoped_ he'd be there—or somewhere beyond that, at least. Without even bidding the guards a good day, she raced through the gates and a good ways until she stopped amongst the trees, only just beginning to grow short of breath.

She had to find him. She had to convince him to cease his attack on Konoha.

"I could kill you right now, you know." A kunai pierced into the ground at her feet, and she turned to the left where it came from. She wasn't quite sure if her expression showed her feelings or not, but as the Uchiha stepped out from behind the tree, she couldn't feel more relieved.

Well, at least, if he wasn't a clone this time.

"Please don't," she said desperately—she couldn't really call it _begging_—hating herself when her shinobi instincts began to dull in his presence. "Don't destroy Konoha."

Sasuke made his way towards her, coming to a stop only a foot or two away, a hand on his hip. "With security like this, I doubt I could do it without major casualties."

"You'd do it anyway, though, if that was what you really wanted. Are you the real Sasuke-kun, or are you just another clone?"

He tilted his head to the side, lips curving into a slight smirk. "Does it really matter?"

She grew quiet. And when she did, everything quieted with her. The animals stopped rustling, the wind stopped blowing—and, for a moment, she had thought that she even stopped breathing. It seemed so peaceful, and yet, at the same time, so dangerous.

"Why aren't you attacking?" she asked quietly, gaze falling to the grassy ground. She stared at the kunai, remembering how all of her weapons were in place the first night.

"I changed my mind." She looked at him incredulously from the corner of her eye. "Sort of."

"What do you mean?"

Sasuke reached out, and she was surprised to find him twisting a lock of her hair around his finger.

"That's so depressingly ironic," Inner Sakura said, voicing out her thoughts at the very back of her mind. "He has _all_ of you wrapped around his finger. It's not just your hair."

"I suppose," he said slowly, as if looking for the right words, "I don't want to do it quite yet."

Her heart leapt to her throat, and she dared to ask. "Why?" For the love of the Third, she couldn't possibly think of a legit reason for Sasuke to halt his plans. This was _Sasuke_—the man who never cared about anyone other than himself.

The Uchiha turned away, and she swore she found something sparkling in his eyes. "People live there. It's their home."

"As if he ever knew what the word _home_ met." Inner Sakura rolled her eyes.

"Why would you show sympathy when your own home had been destroyed?" she asked cautiously, not sure if she should broach the subject or not.

"It's your home as well. I can't picture you living without a place and friends to return to." Her eyes widened slightly in astonishment at his indirect comment. She felt her heart leaping too her throat in a sudden frenzy, and she was sure he heard her sudden intake of breath.

She hesitated. "So, you're saying you're not attacking because of…me?"

"Don't get cocky. The world doesn't revolve around you."

Sakura completely brushed off his harsh words and all but pounced onto him when she pulled him into a hug. The thought that doing so was probably life-threatening didn't even enter her mind, and as she buried her face into the crook of his neck, she took in his musky scent. "Thank you," she murmured quietly against his skin. "You don't know how much that means to me."

"Hn." One arm snaked around her waist and he held her there loosely, until she pulled her head away just so she could kiss him. Maybe…Maybe he cared after all, she thought. Just maybe.

It had always been her dream for him to care about her.

When her lips were just a hair's breadth away from his, he stiffened. On instinct, she froze as well, afraid that she had done something wrong. The temptation to just lean a little closer and press their mouths together was strong, but she was able to restrain herself due to the fact that—well—he might slit her throat if she did anything.

Being a medic, she could sense his chakra flare for a minute moment. She watched as his eyes flashed side to side, checking their surroundings. His breath against her skin made her heartbeat quicken, and his entire body was so still, she was afraid that she was going to fall over from the tension.

And then he disappeared. A cloud of smoke in her face and his body vanished; arm gone from her waist, dark eyes no longer staring at her.

Another clone.

It was a long moment, before she allowed her arms to drop back to her sides. What had happened?

"You should've kissed him while you had the chance," Inner Sakura snapped irritably.

And, suddenly, three shinobi arrived. She felt the familiar probe of Ino's chakra, and she allowed the blonde kunoichi to place a hand on her shoulder from behind. Sakura turned to her absently, making sure to mask her emotions as well as possible.

Chouji and Shikamaru were off in the distance, and when her eyes locked with the Nara's, she wasn't sure what to do. But when he stared at her lazily, she decided to turn her attention back to her friend.

"What's up, Ino-pig? You find him?"

The other girl peered at her curiously. "I was just about to ask you. I thought I felt something over here, but you were just standing there like a total loser. The shock hasn't worn off, yet?" At that last comment, Ino's lips curved into a slight smirk.

Sakura rolled her eyes in response. "I doubt yours has, either. I don't know whether to be glad, or scared shitless."

Her friend's expression softened at her words. She was sure they didn't suspect her of anything—except for Shikamaru, she supposed—but having to lie to Ino was one of the most painful things she would have to do in her life.

She had managed to avoid the betrayal of her friends, but was it worth it?

She honestly didn't know.

**x**

Back when everything was still peaceful, Kakashi had invited them on an outing.

It took place in a field near the edge of Konoha, where the nature remained untouched. They had brought their supplies to last them the night, and waited for their teacher to arrive, knowing that he'd be late anyway.

They stayed up until they couldn't feign off their sleep anymore, just talking, laying on the grass and staring at the sky. They counted stars, pointed out constellations, sang songs (except for Sasuke, of course), and even started a small game of Truth or Dare.

Needless to say, it was one of the best nights Sakura had in her life.

Of course, there had been a lot of conflict as well. The rivalry between Naruto and Sasuke didn't fade in the slightest, and she and Sasuke never really did have a romantic moment like she hoped they would—but it was so uniquely _them_ in a way that she didn't seem to mind.

Kakashi never did come that night, and something in her told her that he never intended to. She appreciated his effort to strengthen Team Seven in his own lazy way.

Ironically, at that time, she thought to herself, _If only things could stay this way forever._

**x**

When Sakura arrived home that night, she wasn't sure what to do.

Follow her normal routine and shower? Make a late-night dinner? She was so physically and mentally exhausted, she wasn't sure, exactly.

She could still feel the ghost of Sasuke's lips lingering at her own. She had been so close, _so close_ to stealing a last kiss before he finally disappeared for good. Reports told that he and his little team had escaped Konoha's grasp. Perhaps they were many miles away even before the execution began; they had it all planned out from the start.

Another thing that bothered her was the fact that he actually halted his attack. Although she had no idea why he would ambush Konoha, she was sure that if it was what he wanted to do, he wouldn't stop it just for her. She wasn't special enough. In fact, no one was special enough.

Indeed, it bothered her greatly. What did it mean?

Uchiha Sasuke was never known for his feelings—maybe because he didn't show them, or because he simply didn't have any. He was born into the Uchiha clan, meaning that he possessed talent, apathy, and good looks.

He would have never given her the time of day.

Her heart throbbed achingly when she reminded herself why he had done what he did to her. It served her right. Believing him for even a moment—even if it _was_ because of his Sharingan—was absolutely ridiculous. She didn't even question him. Didn't even try to fight back.

But it felt so right…His words were so soothing, his touches so intimate, his kisses so real—or maybe, she just wanted them to be.

She honestly didn't know anymore. Would she do it again if given the chance? Without a doubt, yes. That was what frightened her. What if he came back? What if her repeated mistake cost the lives of everyone she held dear?

She wandered to her room, where they had made love two nights ago. No—that wasn't the right term. Sasuke didn't make love.

But that was the only way she could describe it. Maybe it was just her; maybe she wanted to imagine that his fleeting touches held some feelings in them, and that he kissed her while thinking of _her_ and not how he was going to destroy Konoha.

But, again, maybe it was just her.

Her bed sheets were crumpled due to her laziness and not wanting to make her bed that morning—and then it had been left alone for a day when she was locked in her cell. She was about to just fall onto the bed and fall asleep in whatever position she landed in, until she found a little note placed on her pillow.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she paused, not sure if she wanted to see it or not. Maybe it was a secret profession of love—Inner Sakura snorted—or a threat to destroy the village properly the next time. She really didn't know.

But her fingers acted on their own accord, and took the piece of paper.

She blinked and she stared at the awkward scrawl. It looked as though the person who wrote it hadn't written anything in years.

The message was short, but it left her mind spinning:

_I'll show you a dream another night._

No signature, not indication, no direct meaning. Sakura blinked as she stared, more than positive that Sasuke had written this. She could almost imagine him standing in the exact same spot she was now, writing with the pen on her bedside table, a blank expression on his face.

Dream. What exactly did that mean? Genjutsu? What he had done to her every night these past six days? The colossal wave of emotions that crashed onto her every time she saw him?

She wasn't sure. Just as always, he was confusing, indirect, and selfish. Not even considering how she felt about the way he acted.

But maybe, she supposed, that would be okay. For now.

She smiled softly at the piece of paper and held it to her chest for a moment, feeling her heat beating in a steady _thump-thump_, _thump-thump_. Not racing like she expected it to, just because he had gone out of his way to write her a note—but for the first time in a long while, she looked towards the future and found that it was bright.

There was still that little nagging at the back of her mind—and her heart—that was telling her that she was playing right into his hands again. It was saying how stupid she was to even be the slightest bit glad that she'd hear from him when not on the battlefield.

Placing the note in the top drawer of her bedside table, she headed to the kitchen to make herself a warm dinner. She needed to get rid of that bittersweet taste at the back of her mouth.

On the seventh and final night, Sakura was at peace.

**

* * *

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**A/N: **Oh, my gosh, this is the end! I'm so sad to see it go!

You guys, this isn't cool. xx. false - deception had to deal with beta reading every single chapter of this fic. You really need to PM her, or review her stuff, or something, as a thank you, or it would have never been the way it is now. I'm psychic. I know you guys read my author's notes. I know you guys aren't acknowledging her.

Thank you guys so much for supporting me. It got a lot more feedback than I had anticipated, by far. That makes me incredibly happy. I'm now working on another SasuSaku—a happier one—titled _Sticks and Stones_. The first chapter is officially posted—go check it out!

I would like to give thanks to those who reviewed every single chapter thus far (in alphabetical order): C.A.M.E.O.1 and Only, Chantrea Moonbeam, MyUsedRomance, and TrinityAngelX. You guys really helped me get through this. There were one or two of you that reviewed on all chapters but one, and I was like, "Argh, no! I wanted to add them!"

And, of course, the ones whose reviews really stuck out, or helped me in some way or other to improve (again, alphabetical order): Ayame, kheidianne, Market Rush, sharingan dream, stones, The Sometimes Hatter, and yuki_shukara. Detailed/long reviews that tell what's specifically good or bad make any writer happy.

I hope all of you are satisfied with this last chapter, because the chances of there being a sequel are very small. -tears up-

EDIT: Okay, so, I know I'm going to be bombarded with questions, so let's hope I can answer them here, before you ask. If you made it through the blocks of text before this.

1. Does Sasuke really love Sakura?  
Well, the question is, do you _want_ him to love Sakura? Because, if you do, then, yes, he does. If you want him to fuck her over again and hang her by a thread just so he can catch her and mess with her one more time in the future, then, by all means, he'll do just that. It's all up to you.

2. Are you satisfied?  
Me? Am _I_ satisfied? Yes, very. This is probably the most successful and well-recieved (and, complete, may I add) multi-chaptered fic I've ever written.

3. Will you write more SasuSaku angst in the future?  
Mm, that's debatable. Maybe. ItaSaku's sort of my OTP, but that may change. You never know. I want to aim for more happy stuff right now, though, 'cause this wore me out, and angst really deserves to be with Sakura paired with any Akatsuki member.

4. What about SasuSaku in general?  
I probably won't write any oneshots on the pairing. Multi-chaptered fics are a maybe, though. I have no other SasuSaku works planned after **Sticks and Stones** that might be posted. Technically, I _do_ have one under my sleeve, but whether or not it'll be posted is a real big maybe.

If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask.


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